Part 2 of 2: The challenge of security for the world economy

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Santiago

Fourth, is the challenge of promoting security for all.

Security can sometimes be a zero sum game, but it does not always have to be that way. Governments must take care to ensure that its quest for security does not lead to the insecurity of others. On the contrary, we must strive to achieve an international condition where the enhancement of one's security also leads to the security of others.

No one country can achieve security by locking itself and insulating others. Just like we cannot have a world where prosperity is segregated, nor can we have a community of nations where security is enjoyed only by some. The world economy must spread prosperity and security for all.

Promoting "security for all" has a deeper dimension: That is, security for individuals. Governments must ensure not just security of the state but also human security, that is, the safety of individuals within the state. It is not sufficient that the state is secure if some of its citizens insecure, unsafe, and unprotected.

Fifth, is the challenge of promoting greater inter-changes and openness. Of course, in this uncertain and dangerous world, there is a definite need to control access into one's borders. But if we seriously intend to unite the world in peace and progress, we will need more, not less, inter-changes across borders and oceans. We need to exchange our students, our teachers, our business actors, our artists, our religious figures, our politicians, our NGOs, our tourists, our citizens. We need to keep the gates closed for criminals and terrorists, but we need to keep it wide open for the creative and productive forces of society.

The world economy must therefore ensure, for its own good, that measures to promote greater security also produce greater inter-changes between the peoples of the world.

The sixth challenge is promoting tolerance building. In this restless world where the factors of ethnicity and religion are becoming more prominent, we have to redefine the concept of "security" and the concept of "development" so as to include tolerance building.

Yes, it is important to promote and defend freedom. But in my view it is even more important to promote tolerance, for without it freedom can become twisted and warped. Many problems of security can be traced to ignorance and a lack of tolerance. A more tolerant society is often more secure, and thereby more free and able to pursue their development goals. This is why Indonesia and Australia are jointly sponsoring an inter-faith dialogue next month in Yogyakarta, Indonesia to facilitate a constructive discourse between religious leaders from various countries.

I have explained what I think are the security challenges for the world economy. Yet, at this CEO Summit, what I am really interested in is the question of what business leaders,that is, all of you, can do to promote a more peaceful world.

Here is how I believe the movers and shakers of the business world can do their part to help our mutual goal of strengthening security and prosperity.

First, you can help the world deal with globalization better. As the engine of this globalized world, the business community can help us better understand, accept and embrace globalization.

You can help us preventing globalization from becoming something that divides, marginalizes, and de-humanizes.

You can help see to it that globalization does not pit us into conflict, but instead can become a tool for empowerment: Empowerment of the poor, empowerment of local communities, empowerment of minority groups.

You can help turn globalization into a positive force, one that can bring governments and businesses to join hands rather than to confront one another.

By doing this, you will help the world tackle the root causes of terrorism, which often take the forms of poverty, alienation, ignorance and injustice.

How do you do this? Well, you can start, as the saying goes, by "walking the talk". That means developing good corporate social responsibility. For trust to develop between businesses and local, if not global, communities, there must be a mutually reciprocal relationship. The community must feel that commercial entities give back as much as they take, and help them in their time of need. This can mean lending a hand to educational programs, or making sure that your enterprise does not endanger the environmental health of the community. Paying attention to your community's well-being can simply mean the difference between conflict and harmony.

Corporations can also be more generous in sharing their technology. Part of the discontent with globalization stems from a sense of inequity, exploitation, and a growing social gap. Almost half of the world's population lives on less than $2 a day. Amongst many of these communities, almost half of all their children are malnourished.

Let's reverse this deplorable statistic. Let's help the UN accomplish its mission of halving the numbers of people struggling on less than a dollar a day.

Companies can do their part by closing the gap, in concrete terms, sharing some of the knowledge that has led them to good fortune. Much of this technology -- be it hardware or software -- does eventually become common knowledge anyway, adopted by the mainstream. Bringing about this learning curve earlier to local communities can prompt a reserve of goodwill that is immeasurable in terms of numbers.

If you want your investment to serve you well, you must also invest in people. You must help communities boost their human resources, providing training programs, scholarships, and other educational opportunities. You must address the public's perception that globalization is turning societies into unskilled labor forces. You must convince them that a more educated and skilled workforce is as much your objective as it is theirs.

Corporations are regarded by most of the population as a wellspring of wealth. Hence it is your responsibility to transform this perceived "plenty" into "opportunity" for those around you. Corporations are in a strategic place to bridge this great divide between poverty and prosperity -- make the most of that opportunity, and you may just see this prosperity become even greater.

So this is my message to all of you: Let us join hands, let us partner with one another -- governments hand in hand with the private sector -- to promote security and prosperity.

Let us do our best to think of and realize solutions that will make our families safer, our economies prosper, and our countries secure.

This is an abridged text of keynote address given by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the APEC-CEO summit on Saturday, Nov. 20, 2004.