Rights activist Jesse Jackson meets Megawati

JAKARTA (JP): United States civil rights activist Jesse Jackson met with ousted leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) Megawati Soekarnoputri, lending her moral support and expressing hope for a fair and honest election here next year.

The meeting took place yesterday amid heavy security by some 50 plainclothes police officers who joined in the media frenzy at Hilton Hotel's Lagoon Tower, where Jackson stayed during his visit to Indonesia.

In a press conference afterward, Jackson said he discussed a "wide range" of subjects with Megawati, including the current situation of civil rights in Indonesia.

"Our concern is that as governments in this region develop, there would be some...sharing of values as a basis of a full relationship," he said.

"We may not share cultures, but we must have shared values... There's room for variations in culture and beliefs, (but) there must be some shared values in this new world economic order," he said.

Jackson's three-day visit to Indonesia included a visit to the headquarters of the unrecognized Indonesian Prosperous Labor Union, the government-backed Federation of All-Indonesian Workers Union and an Indonesian-South Korean joint venture factory producing sport shoes for the U.S.-based Reebok company.

He failed, however, to visit a Nike-affiliated factory which was recently accused of unfair labor practices.

In a letter from Nike's Washington, D.C. office to Jackson, made available to the press yesterday, Nike said it doubted the visit of Jackson and his Rainbow Coalition would be "unbiased".

"Nike has always welcomed unbiased observers in our subcontracted facilities... Unfortunately, our previous experience with the Rainbow Coalition leads us to believe that your visit would lack that unbiased approach," the letter read.

Commenting on the issue, Jackson acknowledged yesterday that Reebok was "at least open enough to all of us to meet with them in a tour".

On Nike, he said: "Nike, because of their sense of embarrassment about many of the conditions in their plants would not allow us to tour their facilities".

He considered that Nike had moved from South Korea, "where it has an abundant cheap labor base", to Indonesia. "And now (they are) moving on to China," he said.

Jackson said his discussions with Megawati included issues on labor rights, women's rights and children's rights in the country.

He said there should be a commitment to human rights, free political systems, self-determination, labor rights and "free and fair trade unions without military interference".

"As we move towards world stability, the rights of workers and human rights must be central to any country pursuing economic justice and development," Jackson said.

Megawati said she wanted Americans to be aware that general elections will be held in Indonesia next year and that PDI was hoping for one that meets the principles of a free, confidential and direct election.

"(Jackson) has sympathized deeply on this... And if politically, such an election cannot be held, it will be seen very clearly," she said.

In his response, Jackson said that Megawati's requests was a "reasonable expectation".

"I hope that in the election next year, we can all feel a sense of optimism taking place under these conditions," he said.

The concerns about human rights and democracy in Indonesia were also raised by The New York Times in its editorial on Saturday timed to coincide with the visit of U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher for the ASEAN meetings, UPI reported.

The Times said Washington should be more "forthright" in approaching Indonesia.

"America should stand behind the efforts of Indonesia's impressive network of independent civic organizations to smooth the transition toward a more democratic future," the Times wrote in its editorial on Saturday.

"As Indonesia's second-largest trading partner and one of its largest sources of foreign investment, the United States could exert a significant positive influence.

"The Clinton administration has been understandably eager to increase American business involvement in booming Southeast Asia. But Washington should not pursue business promotion at the expense of efforts to encourage respect for labor standards, human rights, and the environment," it said.

"In Jakarta, Ambassador Stapleton Roy has set a good example by standing up to pressure from Freeport-McMoran Copper and Gold Inc., which wants Washington to withdraw financial support from a local environmental organization that has challenged the company's mining practices.

"The administration is right to pursue economic opportunities in Indonesia. But it best serves American values and longer-term business interests by supporting those Indonesians now pressing for increased democracy and human rights," it said. (pwn/mds)