RI-Australia ties: East Timor, Bali bombing, tsunami and beyond

Imron Cotan, Canberra

Much has been said on the impact of the tsunami on Indonesia- Australia relations. The tragedy has indeed provided yet another opportunity to better Indonesia's rollercoaster relationship with Australia.

While Indonesia and Australia are close geographically, in many respects they are absolutely different from one another, notably in terms of history, culture and political orientation, to name but a few. It would therefore be naive to expect that the relationship between the two countries will be problem free.

The history of the relationship between Indonesia and Australia -- which spans incidentally just a relatively short period of roughly 60 years -- has been characterized for the most part by peaks and troughs, seldom has there been the stable, friendly, and cooperative long-term relationship that some would expect of close neighbors.

Australia's involvement in East Timor was one major turning point in Indonesia-Australia relations. The remarkably excellent bilateral ties up to that point nosedived to the extent that Indonesia, in September, 1999, decided to abrogate the security pact signed by Indonesia and Australia on Dec. 18, 1995.

A significant step was taken in the Sixth Indonesia-Australia Ministerial Forum in Jakarta in March 2003 in which the Australian Ministers reiterated the strong statements of support for Indonesia's territorial integrity stated by PM John Howard on various occasions, including the one he made during his meeting with President Megawati in February 2003.

The relations continued to prosper when Indonesia and Australia were confronted with common threats of trans-national crimes, notably people smuggling, money laundering and terrorism.

The Bali Bombing in October 2002 that claimed 202 innocent lives -- 88 of them were Australians -- have further paved the way for Indonesia and Australia to enhance their relations. The police of the two countries have been closely working together in hunting down the perpetrators in Indonesia, leading to their arrests and prosecutions.

Indeed, this tragic incident has presented Indonesia and Australia with an opportunity to beef up regional cooperation to combat terrorism.

The tsunami that has claimed around 250,000 lives and inflicted horrendous damage on properties in Aceh and North Sumatra, has presented yet another opportunity for Indonesia and Australia to get closer, one to another.

While other countries were still trying to comprehend the massive scale of the tragedy, Australia was the first to come and help the victims to weather this indeed tragic calamity by immediately sending several transport planes loaded with emergency supplies and followed closely by around 1,000 defense personnel. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono spoke from his heart when he met Prime Minister John Howard in Jakarta recently during which he was quoted as saying: "You were first on the phone. You were the first to have aircraft on the ground. That is a gesture I will never forget."

Again, both Indonesia and Australia have to appreciate the fact that no one resented the massive presence of ADF on Indonesia's soil, indicating that the ill-feelings emanating from the East Timorese debacle have vanished as was also correctly portrayed by PM John Howard when he recently stated that: "the close relationship between Australia's military and Indonesian troops in Jakarta's hour of need proved both countries had turned the corner from the strains of East Timor in 1999".

At the government-to-government level, Indonesia and Australia now have a post-tsunami mechanism for cooperation namely the Australia-Indonesia Partnership for Reconstruction and Development (AIPRD) directly chaired by the president and the prime minister and equipped with a joint commission of their foreign and economic ministers. This body will oversee the utilization over the next five years of Australia's A$1 billion assistance package to help rebuild the devastated areas in Aceh and North Sumatra.

The generosity of the Australian people is also amazing. Over $260 million has been raised nationally.

With regards to Australia-Indonesia relations in the broader context, on the regional front, Indonesia has always supported the full integration of Australia into the region for obvious reasons.

Geography dictates that Indonesia and Australia should work together to confront common threats and to provide stability and prosperity in the region. Indonesia firmly believes that there will be no political stability and economic prosperity in the region should Indonesia and Australia fail to cooperate.

This firm conviction has led Indonesia to support the full integration of Australia into the regional networks. It is indeed in the vital interests of Indonesia to constructively engage Australia, for politically it may serve as the bridging brick between a western-based civilization of Australia with eastern- based civilization of Southeast Asian countries whilst economically this may prove to be the key to the survival of both parties.

From the economic point of view, ASEAN is also very important for Australia. Looking at some of the figures, the ten countries of ASEAN have a combined population of around 550 million; a total GDP at around US$682 billion.

The Australia-ASEAN- New Zealand Free Trade Agreement that was announced on Nov. 30, 2004, with negotiations to commence shortly, also offers a golden opportunity for Australia to further economically excel together with countries in the region.

At the bilateral level, the trade volume between the two countries is also encouraging. Indonesian exports to Australia were US$2.46 billion (Jan.-Nov. 2004) and its imports from Australia, US$2.19 billion (Jan.-Nov. 2004), leaving the balance of trade in Indonesia's favor at US$273 million.

It is interesting to note that the recent improvements of Indonesia -- Australia bilateral ties were achieved not by design but basically by default or dictated by divine intervention through tragedies, such as terrorist attacks and natural disasters.

It is against this backdrop that Indonesia and Australia need to consult and discuss matters of common concern in order to avoid any misunderstandings and misapprehensions and to prevent distrust from reigning again. The two nations should be able to address tactfully, again, through dialogs and consultations, all the sensitive issues, especially those directly affecting Indonesia's national interests such as issues relating to travel warnings, pre-emptive strikes, missile defense systems, and the recently introduced Australian Maritime Identification Zone.

The writer is Indonesia's Ambassador to Australia. The article was condensed from a speech he made at a Melbourne Town Hall Forum on Australia-Indonesia: After the Tsunami organized by the Asialink Centre and the Age newspaper last month.