Megawati awards U.S. scholar Bresnan

Megawati awards U.S. scholar Bresnan

President Megawati Soekarnoputri honored American researcher John J. Bresnan (right) on Wednesday for helping thousands of Indonesian scholars to study abroad during a decade of working with the Ford Foundation.

Megawati presented Bresnan of Columbia University with the Bintang Jasa Pratama, or the Star of Primary Service, one of the highest honors for work that promotes Indonesia.

Bresnan, currently with the East Asian Institute at the university, is an old friend of Indonesia and has served twice in the country with the Ford Foundation, from 1961 to 1965 as deputy chief, and from 1969 to 1974 as the foundation's chief.

His greatest contributions to Indonesia came in the form of sending the country's most prominent economists for tertiary programs at the University of California at Berkeley in 1961.

Economists such as Widjojo Nitisastro, Emil Salim and Ali Wardhana were among these scholars, and later became known as the architects of the New Order economy. These economists were often referred to as members of the "Berkeley Mafia."

In addition, Bresnan helped send many other Indonesians to study at American universities, academics who later became the country's pioneering experts in many fields such as history, literature, Islamic studies and women's studies.

Bresnan, who has authored books on Indonesia and on Southeast Asia, is the third American after George Kahin of Cornell University and Clifford Geertz of Princeton University to receive the award.

The award was initially slated to be given in Washington by an Indonesian representative, but the arrangement was changed as Megawati wanted to present the award to Bresnan personally. --Agencies.