Mega charms Koizumi, not media

Mega charms Koizumi, not media

Kornelius Purba, Staff writer, The Jakarta Post, Tokyo

The Japanese Embassy in Jakarta recently invited The Jakarta Post
and a number of other Indonesian journalists to Tokyo during the
visit of President Megawati Soekarnoputri. The following is the
report.

Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Secretary General Taku
Yamasaki, regarded as Japan's second most powerful politician
after Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, tried to maintain his
composure when an Indonesian minister asked whether Yamasaki had
ever held a position in government.

Koizumi had just introduced Yamasaki to his guests in the
entourage of visiting President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who sat
next to Yamasaki at a dinner to honor her at the PM's official
residence.

The minister knows little about Yamasaki, who has strong
connections with Indonesia and is well known among Japanese
businesses operating in Indonesia.

He came to Jakarta in August to discuss four problematic
Japanese projects, including the controversial petrochemical
plant PT Chandra Asri in Banten and the Paiton power plant
project in East Java.

Japanese companies operating in Indonesia also sought
Yamasaki's help in January when Muslim organizations protested
against the taste enhancer producer Ajinomoto, accused of using
pork-related elements in its manufacturing process.

The minister's ignorance about Yamasaki may reflect a general
attitude among Indonesian senior officials towards Japan despite
it being the country's largest donor and importer, including of
gas and crude oil, and largest investor.

A bit of a personal approach, perhaps through prior briefing
to the President and high ranking officials on facing the
Japanese government and its people, may have helped compensate
for this ignorance despite the overall success rate of Megawati's
visit to both the United States and Japan.

Koizumi attempted to use some Indonesian words in his address
during the dinner but there was no such reciprocation on
Megawati's part. As a child, she had accompanied her father,
first president Sukarno, on visits to Japan.

Regrettably she did not talk to Japanese journalists, who of
course came to know of her joint press conference with her host
U.S. President George W. Bush at the White House before visiting
Tokyo.

The media here felt that Megawati could have made more use of
her position as the leader of the country with the world's
largest Muslim population to attract the attention of a public
largely ignorant about Islam.

So despite the welcome felt ahead of Megawati's visit, among
other things through the sale of candies wrapped in her image,
the above situation may have contributed to the lack of coverage
of her five-day visit from Sept. 26 -- apart from the focus of
the media on the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the U.S.

The image of Sukarno remains strong among the Japanese,
perhaps partly because of his marriage to a Japanese woman, Naoko
Nemoto, or Dewi Sukarno, in 1959.

Pointing to the President's tight schedule, State
Secretary/Cabinet Secretary Bambang Kesowo turned down interview
requests from Japanese media, including major TV stations.

Bambang may not have realized the strong influence of the
Japanese media in Indonesia. At least seven major media
organizations, including giant Yomiuri Shimbun, Asahi Shimbun and
public TV station NHK have permanent correspondents in Jakarta.

"Of course politically America is very important to you," an
Asahi Shimbun journalist quipped. "But in terms of your economic
interests, our role is much more decisive. Why did your President
refuse to talk to us?"

Unlike her predecessors, including Soeharto, who often came to
Tokyo to ask for loans from Japan's government and private
companies, Megawati's mission was much more complicated. She was
hoping to persuade Japan, if possible, to reduce its 3.6
trillion-yen outstanding loan to Indonesia.

Koizumi strongly ruled out any hair cut scenario but offered
to provide more flexible and cheaper loans.

Japanese officials, who briefed Koizumi before the meeting,
said Indonesia should realize that their government was no longer
in a position to meet Indonesia's every need, unlike in the
period of Soeharto's 32 year regime.

"Indonesia, which used to get what it asked for from Japan,
sometimes looks like a spoiled boy to us. But frankly, due to our
difficult economic situation, your government should reduce its
dependence on us," said a Japanese official, who spoke on
condition of anonymity.

In trade, Japan is Indonesia's fifth largest source of imports
after the U.S., China, South Korea and Taiwan. Last year,
Indonesia enjoyed a trade surplus of about $9 billion with Japan.

Megawati's performance in two separate meetings with Japanese
business leaders was, however, quite impressive. In her breakfast
meeting with 60 members of Keidanren, a group of big Japanese
companies, she received many complaints about the situation in
Indonesia.

But Megawati was prudent and avoided making any promises. She
asked her ministers, including Minister of Mines and Energy
Purnomo Yusgiantoro and Minister of State Enterprises Laksamana
Sukardi to answer the questions.

Prime Minister Koizumi, Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa and
Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka reportedly told the Japanese envoy
to Indonesia Yukio Takeuchi that they were impressed by
Megawati's leadership.

Megawati has proved her ability to persuade the Japanese
government to provide more "breathing space" for her new
government amid Japan's ailing economy.

Her successful meeting with Bush was also crucial to convince
Koizumi on the need to support her government for the sake of
international security.