More work needed on rights: Barry

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia must continue to improve its human rights record as it faces increasing scrutiny, resulting from the country's ascendancy in the international arena, the United States Ambassador said yesterday.

Robert L. Barry said that, as Indonesia becomes more well- known, it is inevitable individuals and groups from all over the world would begin to express comments and interpretations of the country's development.

"Asserting political leadership on the world scene can also require sacrifices and even more often a certain level of discomfort," he said in a speech at the embassy.

Indonesia has grabbed an increasing share of the international spotlight in recent years by playing an active role in world affairs. It currently chairs the 112-nation Non-Aligned Movement and is a serving a two-year term on the UN Security Council. In November, Indonesia hosted a leaders meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

To prove his point, Barry pointed out the events that happened during the convening of the APEC summit, which, he said, "exposed the host to the not-always-gentle scrutiny of the world press".

Several anti-Indonesia East Timorese youths occupied the U.S. embassy parking compound during the APEC summit, drawing the attention of the hordes of foreign journalists, who were here to cover the leadership meeting.

Barry's comments yesterday came at the end of his three-year tenure as ambassador to Indonesia. He is scheduled to leave the country in the second week of July.

After a 40-year career, Ambassador Barry intends to retire from government service at the end of his posting here.

As a speaker at the ninth Zorinsky Memorial Lecture, Barry's remarks continued an apparent tradition for American ambassadors in Indonesia to deliver strong messages before leaving. In 1989, outgoing ambassador Paul D. Wolfowitz set the ball rolling when he called for an increasing need for political openness.

His successor, John C. Monjo, before leaving in 1992, gave a strong statement openly criticizing practices such as red tape and corruption, which, he believed, dampened American investors from doing business here.

Barry said that he contemplated on whether to continue this tradition, but decided in the end "I couldn't resist the temptation."

Among those in attendance were Megawati Soekarnoputri, who chairs the Indonesian Democratic Party, and Adnan Buyung Nasution, founder of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation.

Though his remarks yesterday were subtle, Barry noted the need for adherence to universal principles of human rights, freedom of the press and further loosening of the economic system.

Barry later admitted to journalists that he was trying to be "Javanese", a popular Indonesian expression for polite, in his presentation.

On human rights, Barry altogether avoided any indictment of Indonesia, or the mention of specific cases of violations.

Instead he carefully alluded to the resentment of some Indonesians to foreign criticism of rights, while reminding everyone that the 1955 Asia-Africa Conference in Bandung, West Java, proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as the standard to which nations should be held.

Nasution later commented on how Barry's remarks underlined Indonesia's obligation to these basic rights principles.

He contended that the government's acknowledgment to the Declaration, as alluded to by Barry, dispelled Jakarta's arguments that it has its own standards of human rights other those applied by the "West".

Barry also strongly stated American concerns on the placing of restrictions on freedom of the press throughout the world.

He did not mention any particular incident.

The ambassador said that even in the U.S., people were sometimes uncomfortable with their press. "But we recognize that it plays an essential role in a civil society."

He maintained that a free and lively press was necessary for ensuring public debate, which will help improve the quality of government policies.

Non-governmental organizations and analysts must also be free to express their views "without fear of retribution", he added.

Barry expressed confidence that "progress in the areas of political openness, rule of law and the protection of individual rights will occur" in Indonesia.

Barry also urged further commitment to open up the Indonesian economy, which, he understood, could be painful "to those who have benefited from a more restrictive system."

He stressed the need for the loosening of the often monopolistic structures and more participation by a wider segment of the population.

While commenting on the various deregulation packages introduced by the government, Barry called for the opening of the services and distribution sector, which, he said, would boost Indonesia's human capital resources and allow consumers access to the best products and prices. (mds)