Malaysia, RI enjoy cordial ties despite problems
Veeramalla Anjaiah, Staff Writer, The Jakarta Post, Kuala Lumpur
Relations between Malaysia and its sprawling neighbor Indonesia are solid despite some problems and their different perspectives in regards current issues like haze, illegal Indonesian immigrants, and territorial claims.
Both Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta consider their differences to be a litmus test of their bilateral ties.
Malaysia, with a Muslim majority, has been enjoying close and cordial relations with Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim nation, since the end of the konfrontasi (1965-67) era when they had verged on the edge of armed confrontation.
"Our bilateral relations are very good, and we manage it very well. We know that there are differences in our approaches and in regards some sensitive issues, but we also know how to overcome these differences and handle those sensitive issues," Syed Hamid Albar, Malaysian Minister of Foreign Affairs, told The Jakarta Post in Malaysia's new administrative capital, Putra Jaya, earlier this month.
Scores of Malaysians interviewed by the Post said they were quite unhappy with the Indonesian government's handling of the haze problem. Nearly every dry monsoon, thick smoke caused by forest fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan covers Malaysia and creates a health hazard for thousands of Malaysians.
Bilateral ties also became a bit strained following the massive deportation of thousands of illegal Indonesian workers from Malaysia, a few of whom were even jailed and caned for resisting deportation procedures.
The incident led to a war of words between Malaysian officials and Indonesian political leaders and activists, and provoked protests by Indonesian labor activists at the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta.
According to Hamid Albar, there are almost one million Indonesians who are legal residents in Malaysia. Malaysia also has another one million illegal foreign workers from various countries, and the majority of these illegal workers are Indonesians.
"We have a policy of prospering by neighbors," said the foreign minister.
Despite the policy, Malaysia, in an unprecedented move and armed with its new immigration laws, deported several hundred thousands of illegal aliens including 480,000 Indonesian workers.
"We want to take Indonesians, but we don't want them to be exploited. What we have been saying is that they shouldn't come illegally," Hamid Albar explained, adding that his country also needed Indonesian workers to help support its growing agricultural, industrial, and construction sectors.
At the sidelines of his annual consultative meeting with Indonesian President Megawati Soekarnoputri in August, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad expressed his optimism on improving bilateral relations with the Indonesian government despite the deportation issue.
Meanwhile, bilateral trade has been growing at a strong pace, in spite of the 1997 economic crisis that plunged Indonesia into turmoil.
"In fact, Indonesia is our biggest trading partner in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region, and our trade with Indonesia increased even during the crisis period," Malaysia's Minister of International Trade and Industry Rafidah Aziz told the Post at her office in Kuala Lumpur.
The total value of bilateral trade in 2001 was US$3.8 billion, an improvement on the trade value in 2000, which stood at US$3.1 billion. Indonesian exports to Malaysia in 2001 were recorded at US$2.2 billion, or around 4 percent of Indonesia's total exports that year, worth US$56.03 billion.
Bilateral trade with Malaysia has always been in Indonesia's favor. For example, Indonesia enjoyed a trade surplus of US$600 million in 2001 and US$540 million in 2000. Jakarta expects exports to Kuala Lumpur will increase this year.
On the investment side, Malaysian investors -- whose total investments in Indonesia since 1967 cumulatively amount to US$9.1 billion -- come to Indonesia given the availability of land for palm oil plantations, cheap assets and labor.
Unfortunately, confusion and uncertainty arising from the newly introduced regional autonomy laws, as well as exorbitant land claims and high compensation sought by Indonesian villagers, have forced a number of Malaysian investors to raise their eyebrows and adopt a cautious stance.
A few investors, however, could not hold off their plan, as in the case of the Bank Niaga deal.
Malaysia's Commerce Asset Holding Berhad, one of the country's leading financial conglomerates, purchased on Nov. 8 a majority stake in Indonesia's Bank Niaga for Rp 1.05 trillion (US$114 million) from the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency.
As signatories of the ASEAN Treaty of Amity and Cooperation -- which advocates the principles of non-interference in each other's internal affairs -- Malaysia and Indonesia have agreed that, should they be involved in a particular dispute, they would resolve the issue peacefully and amicably.
A case in point is the territorial issue surrounding the Ligitan-Sipadan Islands, which are claimed by both Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur.
"...Because of the respect we have for each other, we agreed that the dispute should be settled through the ICJ (International Court of Justice), which will give its judgment at the end of this month," Hamid Albar said, affirming that Malaysia-Indonesia ties are strongly cemented in line with the ASEAN spirit. But Indonesia's Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said Tuesday that the decision regarding the above issue is expected in mid December.
The writer was in Malaysia recently at the invitation of the Malaysian Institute of Strategic and International Studies in Kuala Lumpur.