RI-Australia ties
I am writing in response to Mr. Damien Kingsbury's article Hard road to RI-Australia ties of Nov. 12, 1999. To his credit, the effort is there, but his view is not exactly the kind that would improve ties between Indonesia and Australia.
The East Timor tragedy began at a time when Indonesia was nearing a showdown against its dictatorial regime for greater democracy. The time when the then president B.J. Habibie, in violation of the decree of the People's Consultative Assembly of 1978, took a decision for East Timorese to opt for independence and the violence in East Timor which ensued. It is also history that Prime Minister John Howard showed no sympathy or sensitivity toward the Indonesian people fighting for democracy, and even made the path strenuous.
The author mentioned that despite the Australian government's endorsement, three-quarters of its population opposed the integration into Indonesia of East Timor, which resulted in two decades of military clashes against the communist-based group, the Fretilin. Was Australia's participation in the Vietnam War part of the anticommunist crusade, or was it about creating goodwill with America to aid in the event that Australia's security is threatened? What was the sentiment of Australians then?
One should neither neglect history nor mock the culture of Indonesians or their intelligence even when the education system and media interpreted various events favoring the former dictatorial regime. Indonesians knew, but lived in fear, and those opposing (many Javanese) paid the price with their lives. I do not find Australians receptive when the international community criticizes their treatment toward the Aborigines, brutal involvement in the Vietnam War, support for the economic embargo on Iraq, among others things, which cause deaths of untold number of innocent people. Whether foreign or local, the media have always been partial and biased. Foreign media of rich countries, noticeably, have the resources to manipulate world opinion, while most local media are constrained within their budget.
Indeed, trust and friendship must be earned, but futile if honesty and transparency is biased and partial. The Howard government should take the initiative, because it is that government which started the disruption of friendly relations between the two nations by its arrogance against the Indonesian nation.
Do not forget, Indonesia is a great nation of 205 million people. Its history is full of struggles against colonial powers all over the archipelago. One thing that the Indonesian people, as a struggling nation, cannot take is an insult to their national dignity.
VIKRAMAVARDHANA D.S.
Jakarta