SBY consults tycoon on China visit

SBY consults tycoon on China visit

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Prior to his visit to China next month, President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono met on Monday with Indonesian-born tycoon Tong Djoe,
asking the latter to help the government gain access into the
sprawling Chinese corporate community.

The President also asked the Singapore-based shipping magnate
to help establish connections between businesspeople from
Indonesia and China, given that Tong Djoe has a large network of
friends and associates in the Chinese business community.

"I was called by the President to help the country gain access
into China. I was asked to help him during his visit to the
country in the middle of July, and advise him on how to lure
Chinese businesspeople," Tong Djoe said on Monday at the State
Palace.

He said the two countries' businesspeople should improve their
economic ties due to the number of untapped resources within the
two communities.

Also during the meeting, Tong Djoe said that Susilo had high
hoped that he could help the government repatriate a number of
tycoons charged with corruption, many of whom currently reside in
China.

"President Susilo requested my help in the government's
attempt to bring back troubled Indonesian tycoons who are hiding
in China. However, I cannot fulfill that request because I don't
have any authority over them," he said.

Born in Sumatra in 1927, Tong Djoe's widespread connections in
the Chinese business community was recognized by then President
Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, who asked Tong Djoe to accompany him
during his a visit to China in 2000.

He also worked with Gus Dur's successor President Megawati
Soekarnoputri during her visit to China, in a bid to help attract
more Chinese investment. Tong Djoe, in fact, has had close ties
with the government since the administration of Megawati's
father, founding President Sukarno.

A number of Chinese-born tycoons, mostly banks owners, fled
the country between 1998 and 2002 following the government's
crackdown on bad debtors who had misused liquidity assistance
funds from the central bank (BLBI), to help save their banks from
closure.

President Susilo is likely to bring Tong Djoe along during his
July visit to China to follow up on initial agreements made
recently in Jakarta with visiting Chinese President Hu Jintao on
the expansion of trade cooperation -- up to US$20 billion over
the next three years -- from the current $14 billion.

At present, Indonesia's economy is getting much closer to
China, since a great many Indonesian tycoons are Chinese-born and
still maintain contact with relatives in mainland China.

For Indonesia, which is rich in natural resources, the
agreements are part of an effort to take advantage of China's
booming economy, as well as to build a future regional alliance
in the defense and security sector.