RI to join meeting on democracy in Warsaw

RI to join meeting on democracy in Warsaw

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia will participate in the international
conference on "Toward a Community of Democracies" in Warsaw,
Poland, on June 26 and 27.

The new Polish Ambassador to Indonesia Krzysztof Szumski told
the media on Friday night that Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi
Shihab was scheduled to be one of the main speakers in the
conference, which will be attended by foreign ministers and high-
ranking officials from about 100 countries.

He said ninety countries had confirmed their participation in
the conference.

"It is also possible that President Abdurrahman Wahid will
attend the conference. But the schedule of his visit to the
country (Poland) is still under discussion. It hasn't been
confirmed yet," he said.

Szumski said that apart from Poland the conference was
organized by India, the United States, the Czech Republic, the
Republic of Korea, the Republic of Chile and the Republic of
Mali.

The conference, convoked under particular historical
circumstances -- undeniably created by the fact of unprecedented
development of democracy after World War II in such places as
South America, post-communist Eastern and Central Europe and the
former Soviet Union or South Africa after the fall of apartheid
-- sets as its goal initiating, a debate for strengthening the
democratic structures in the world.

"With the conference we want to facilitate the development of
democracy in other countries," he said.

Szumski said the intergovernmental meeting was expected to
lead to such acts and initiatives as issuing a declaration of
democratic principles based on the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights, forming an informal caucus cooperating on behalf of
enforcing democracy and using results of the Warsaw conference as
a departure point for the Fourth International Conference of New
or Restored Democracies scheduled to be held in Cotonou, Benin,
in December. (bnt)