Ministers told to delay overseas trips

Ministers told to delay overseas trips

JAKARTA (JP): Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri has
forbidden all Cabinet ministers from making overseas trips in
December.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi Shihab said on Monday after a
Cabinet meeting at Bina Graha presidential office, presided over
by Megawati, that the order had been issued "a few days ago". He
was not specific on the date.

Without elaborating, Alwi said the instruction was made to
help ministers concentrate on domestic matters.

The order has also forced some Cabinet ministers to delay a
planned meeting with Australian counterparts prior to a landmark
visit by President Abdurrahman Wahid to the neighboring country
in January.

"Many problems at home involving the ministers need to be
solved. So it is most likely that the ministerial meeting will be
postponed," Alwi said.

The Indonesia-Australia ministerial meeting, which had been
postponed twice by Indonesia, was due to be attended by Alwi and
four other ministers, including Coordinating Minister for the
Economy Rizal Ramli and Junior Minister of the Acceleration of
Development in Eastern Indonesia Manuel Kaisiepo.

Alwi said the President would postpone his visit to Australia
until February, following the delay of the meeting.

"This is because there are more pressing matters at home. I
think they (the Australians) will understand," Alwi said.

Following the Annual Session of the People's Consultative
Assembly in October, Megawati was empowered with day-to-day
government duties.

Abdurrahman was absent from the Cabinet meeting as he was
scheduled to begin medical treatment later in the day.

Acting presidential secretary Mujib Manan said the President
"will undergo treatment until Wednesday and he will not receive
any guests other than very important people."

Manan said treatment would be conducted under the supervision
of the President's private doctors at Merdeka Palace. He gave no
further details.

The President called an unscheduled media conference on
Friday, a day after he arrived from a six-day trip to Qatar and
Brunei, to clarify he was in good health, except for a mild case
of the flu.

He underwent a brief medical examination on Saturday,
officials said.

Manan said this would not change the President's plan to
attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit
in Singapore on Thursday.

Abdurrahman underwent a regular heart and blood pressure
checkup on Oct. 30 at Harapan Kita Cardiac Hospital following the
recommendation of his physicians. The doctors gave him a clean
bill of health. (byg)