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.