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JP/ /

Message from the Ambassador:
"Think Together, Walk Together"

Today, Japan celebrates its national day. Opening this special
supplement is an interview with Yukio Takeuchi, the Japanese
ambassador to Indonesia.

Question: What impressions do you have as you look back at the
nine months that have passed since your arrival in Indonesia?

Quite a lot. First, I am really impressed by the warm,
friendly sentiments shown by Indonesians towards Japan. As for
the vicissitudes in the political field, I see that the elections
for President and Vice-President were held in a peaceful way,
with the transfer of political power taking place without any
confusion.

It is, in my opinion, an indication of the progress so far
made for the sake of democracy in Indonesia. I understand that
more efforts are necessary to implement various forms of reform,
i.e. solving regional problems, achieving economic recovery,
enforcing the rule of law, eradicating KKN (corruption, collusion
and nepotism), etc.

What kind of relationship between Indonesia and Japan is
desirable?

As for Japan, the peace and prosperity of Indonesia -- a large
country with more than 200 million people -- is very important
for the peace and prosperity of the whole Asia-Pacific region. As
fellow Asian friends, the two countries share common values, and
hold out benefits for each other. For that reason, Japan is
endeavoring to expand and deepen the friendly relationship of
cooperation with Indonesia which has been maintained for quite a
long time up to the present day.

A true partner in building peace and prosperity in Indonesia
as part of the quest for peace, democracy prosperity, Japan will
extend any assistance that it can. The important thing in
promoting friendly and cooperative relations is, I think, the
spirit of "Think together, walk together" (Berpikir bersama,
berjalan bersama"). We assure you that Japan will not impose its
own way of thinking upon Indonesia.

As the Ambassador of Japan, what do you regard as being important
in promoting the Japan-Indonesia relationship? Particularly in
the economic field, what do you think?

For the present in Indonesia, the implementation of reform in
various fields so as to bring about economic recovery and
eradicate poverty, and the further development of democracy are
the most important issues. As for me, I will do my best to
support the efforts made by the Indonesian government and people
in coping with such issues.

First, in the economic field, increased employment is very
important for eradicating poverty. Investment is therefore
necessary to enhance employment opportunities and to elevate the
income level of the people. Japan is the largest investor in
Indonesia. Political stability is the most important factor for
the smooth running of Japanese enterprises operating in Indonesia
and, further, for the expansion of investment.

And then, a set of reforms are necessary to make the
environment more conducive for attracting investment. These
reforms include consistent economic policies, law enforcement as
the result of reform of the legal system, the eradication of KKN,
etc. I think establishing stable labor-management relations are
necessary for the expansion of investment. We have been
collaborating on this matter with the Indonesian government and
labor unions.

As for the eradication of poverty, priority should be given to
elementary and middle school education. In this respect, the
following matters are worth emphasizing.

Japan now finds itself in a difficult financial and economic
situation. In spite of that, Japan is providing economic and
technical cooperation for Indonesia, in the best possible way, to
help Indonesia's efforts to achieve self-reliance. Moreover, as
to the inevitable problem of Indonesia's accumulated debt, the
Japanese government has clearly notified its willingness to
assist Indonesia within the Paris Club framework.

What do you think about democratization in Indonesia?

Japan attaches importance to cooperation for the further
development of democratization. As a friend, Japan is providing
assistance for so-called governance reform. In this regard, Japan
is also closely collaborating with Indonesian NGOs. To accelerate
reform leading to democratization, it would be advisable for the
Indonesian people to strive to the utmost to deal with such
problems as law reform and the eradication of KKN.

I observe that nowadays Indonesia enjoys wide-ranging freedom
of information, really something marvelous. This will contribute
to enhancing political transparency, and transparency in
administration and the legal system. It would delight me to see
Indonesian leaders convey their visions and policies quickly and
accurately to the common people, taking advantage of the freedom
of the press.

The mass media, for their part, as standard bearers of
democratization, should deliver news and information with a sense
of responsibility. The Japanese Embassy would like to see the
Indonesian people being informed about real things concerning
Japan, and receiving accurate information about Japanese policy
vis-a-vis Indonesia, including about economic and technical
cooperation. We are endeavoring to ensure that news is provided
in a positive way.

Furthermore, the House of Representatives (DPR) should assume
the most important role and bear the responsibility of upholding
democratic politics by way of exercising supervision over
legislation and the administration. The Japanese Embassy actively
exchanges information and views with the members of the House,
who play such an important role. For example, for the first time
this year, we have begun to provide explanations about Japanese -
Indonesian cooperative relations to House members.

Could you please give some concrete examples of Japanese economic
cooperation with Indonesia ?

As a whole, Japanese economic cooperation with Indonesia
manifests itself in many fields in the form of loans and grants,
and technical cooperation.

For example, to build an environment which is conducive to
attracting stable flows of private investment from foreign
countries, it is important that the administration and legal
system run according to the laws. This must be based on political
stability and security, and proper law enforcement. In this
respect, Japan is actively cooperating and has sent experts on
legal reform, regional autonomy, etc., and accepted Indonesian
trainees. Furthermore, it is also worth mentioning here that
small and medium enterprises have been playing an indispensable
role in providing employment.

As small and medium enterprises constitute one of the pillars
of the industrial base in the country, they are essential for
economic recovery and the eradication of poverty in Indonesia.
For such purposes, Japan is providing cooperation which consists
of various assistance schemes, especially the completed Urata
Report.

Social stability plays an important role in promoting food
self-sufficiency and increasing harvests. That is why efforts
have been and are continuing to be made for cooperation in
farming, while we are also giving assistance for the preservation
of forests and the undertaking of afforestation programs.

Furthermore, to remove the bottlenecks hampering economic
recovery, we have been providing assistance in the form of yen
loans for building roads for transportation and industrial use,
as well as consolidating social infrastructure in the regions. At
the same time, we are considering providing effective assistance
also in the field of energy, such as electricity and gas, and in
IT.

Moreover, in fields that are directly and closely related to
the lives of the Indonesian people, such as basic education,
health and hygiene, various activities are taking place under
grant assistance schemes for the strengthening of schools and
hospitals. These include the distribution of mother and child
health report books with the help of experts from Japan.

Japan also frequently extends humanitarian emergency
assistance, which includes the dispatch of medical teams and the
provision of food, medicines, tents, etc., to the victims of
natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods, and to refugees
fleeing areas of conflict.

Besides cooperation at the government-to-government level,
Japan is doing its utmost to hold dialogs and cooperate with
NGOs. For example, under the grassroots grant assistance scheme,
assistance has been given to NGOs engaged in work in Indonesia
and to Indonesian regional administrations. In fiscal year 2000,
assistance was given to 30 projects with the total amount
involved being US$2 million; in fiscal year 2001, 10 projects
were involved with the total amount being $700,000.

Although at present Japan is also gripped by economic and
financial difficulties and is conducting "Reform without
Sanctuary" -- while Indonesia itself is facing multifarious
difficulties -- yet as fellow Asian friend, Japan will continue
to engage in positive cooperation in so far as possible.

Speaking about economic cooperation, how does Japan see the
outcome of the CGI meeting which was held last August?

Efforts are being earnestly made to bring about economic
recovery. The recent CGI meeting was an opportunity for the
international community to announce its intention of assisting
Indonesia in its efforts to achieve economic recovery. It was
decided at the meeting what financial assistance for fiscal 2002
would be provided. The donor countries have, accordingly,
indicated their strong hope that the reform efforts in Indonesia
can proceed

Japan, despite the prevailing difficult financial situation,
has declared its intention of extending the greatest assistance
possible, up to $7 billion, to cover the financing gap. With debt
rescheduling and the disbursement of the approved assistance
included, the whole amount will cover one third of the overall
financing gap.

Any new developments in respect of cultural exchange programs
between the two countries ?

The Art Summit Indonesia is held every year and involves the
participation of artists from many countries. This year's was the
third in which Japan participated. We had three art troupes
coming over and these were warmly welcomed by the spectators.
However, I am not yet satisfied with the present cultural
exchange situation between our two countries. We should make more
efforts geared towards deeper mutual understanding through
cultural exchange. Cultural exchange activities should be further
developed, particularly by the Japan Foundation in Jakarta and
other organizations.

Regarding personnel exchange, the number of Indonesian
students studying in Japan is increasing from year to year. At
present, more than 1,300 Indonesian students study in Japan every
year. I am happy to observe that those who return home after
completing their studies are very active in various fields. We
are trying to make it possible for many talented Indonesian
students and researchers to study in Japan

Ambassador, you usually describe the Japan-Indonesia relationship
as a "Partnership of thinking together, walking together". What
do you mean by that ?
I think it is important for Japan to extend its hand to assist
Indonesia in the best possible way as Indonesia is endeavoring to
build a democratic and prosperous nation while maintaining its
unity in diversity. Both countries could work hand in hand so as
to achieve common aims. The Japanese people feel a close affinity
with and respect for the Indonesian people and their culture.
Without such feelings of affinity and respect, no cooperative
relationship could be built. Furthermore, both countries also
share common interests. For that reason, I am convinced that what
is good for Indonesia is also good for Japan, and what is good
for Japan is also good for Indonesia. In such a Japan - Indonesia
relationship, Japan will certainly not impose its own way of
thinking in assisting the efforts being made to bring about
economic recovery and implement various reforms in Indonesia.
Being true partners, it is cooperation between two friends who
"Think together, and walk together".

Indonesia is now passing through a period of transition during
which it has to face many challenges. I keep on imploring the
Indonesian people to pull together, and to brace themselves to
aptly face the challenges in order to achieve political
stability, economic development and the advancement of
democratization.