Koizumi's speech
Japan's prime minister Junichiro Koizumi concluded his visit to a number of ASEAN countries by delivering a major speech in Singapore. The event, referred to as the 20th Singapore Lecture, was organized by the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS).
This newspaper considers that speech important enough to carry major portions of it on this page. After all, when a prime minister of an Asian country with the world's second-largest economy deems it worthy to publicly convey his concept of the future of our region, that event certainly deserves our serious attention.
We have no quarrel regarding the prime minister's proposed major initiative in five areas that would strengthen cooperation between Japan and the ASEAN countries. Provided that the plan is prepared with care, that it is supported by sufficient funding and is well-managed in its execution, it can indeed be expected that it will bring considerable improvement in the East Asian situation over the next 25 years.
The key, of course, is that Japan must be able to strengthen its economy and play a dynamic leadership role in the region in order that the Koizumi initiative can continue to develop, even after its initiator is gone. It is precisely in this respect, however, that some skepticism exists -- which is understandable on hearing the grandiose concept as proposed by prime minister Koizumi. Unless, of course, if his just-concluded tour of several ASEAN countries and his speech in Singapore were meant as a grand public relations exercise to convey the message that Japan is still a major player to be reckoned with in the Asian power play.
In this age of sophisticated information technology in which instant perceptions have such a strong influence on the Japanese public, it is hard to blame prime minister Koizumi for launching such a grand public relations stunt. After all, with his attractive appearance, his rubbing shoulders with leaders in Southeast Asia and offering brilliant ideas for the future beamed into millions of households in Japan, the Japanese prime minister could by such an exercise presumably gain some more time to continue his tough and frustrating task of straightening out Japan's economy.
The trouble is that the global electronic airwaves also convey other images and messages. On the very day that prime minister Koizumi delivered his 20th Singapore Lecture, China's prime minister Zhu Rongji and his wife were seen arriving in Agra, India, and admiring the Taj Mahal as ordinary tourists. In other words, China's image as an emerging economic giant that is quietly networking throughout Asia and the world looms large among global audiences.
Prime Minister Koizumi admitted in his speech that he is a great fan of opera. He therefore likened his proposed community of cooperation in East Asia as an opera in which singers and instruments "come together in one complete and impressive drama." If Japan intends to sing the main aria in this new East Asian opera, it should also clearly indicate the funding commitments it is willing to make to ensure the success of this new opera. It is this clear commitment that is missing in the Koizumi speech.
Nevertheless, Indonesia should treat Japan's new initiative seriously and grab the fresh opportunities that are offered. In at least two areas, human resources development and training in information and communications technology, Jakarta should prepare detailed proposals to be submitted to Tokyo. It should also urge Japan to seriously deal with those proposals because those two areas are of vital importance to Indonesia's future. By giving such a positive and serious response to the Koizumi initiative, Tokyo will find out that even a grandiose public relations scheme has unavoidable collateral costs that need to be paid.