Soeharto, Li Peng assure smooth transfer
Soeharto, Li Peng assure smooth transfer
By Rikza Abdullah
COPENHAGEN (JP): President Soeharto and Chinese Prime Minister
Li Peng assured on Saturday that national leadership succession
in their countries would be smooth given the existing
constitutional mechanisms.
"We have a national leadership mechanism to guarantee the
institutionalization of presidential succession," Soeharto told
Li in a meeting on Saturday at the United Nations' two-day World
Summit for Social Development.
Besides Li, Soeharto also held meetings with Azerbaijan
President Heydar Alirza Ogly Aliyev, Madagascar Prime Minister
Fransisque Ravony, Sudan President Omar Hassan Ahmed El Bashir,
Turkish President Suleyman Demirel, Bangladesh Prime Minister
Begum Khaleda Zia, Mauritanian Prime Minister Sidi Mohamed Ould
Boubacar and Colombian President Ernesto Samper Pizano.
"Under the Constitution of 1945, we have held presidential
elections several times and the mechanisms for leadership
succession have run smoothly," Soeharto was quoted by
Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono as saying.
He acknowledged, however, that the People's Consultative
Assembly had elected the same person at each of its five-yearly
meetings since the latter half of the 1970s.
According to Moerdiono, Soeharto's discussion of leadership
succession in Indonesia was prompted by Li and his information on
the health of China's leader Deng Xiaoping.
Li said that Deng's health was improving and that the
succession of leadership in China would also run smoothly.
Discussing the Spratly Islands, both Soeharto and Li agreed
that diplomatic negotiations were the best way to solve disputes
over the islands.
The Spratlys are claimed by China, Vietnam, the Philippines,
Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia.
In the meeting with Colombian President Ernesto, Soeharto said
that he is ready to transfer his chairmanship of the Non-Aligned
Movement (NAM) to Ernesto at its 11th summit meeting in October
in Cartagena.
Soeharto has been chairman of the movement since its Jakarta
summit in September 1992.
"President Soeharto promised Indonesia's cooperation to ensure
the success of the next NAM summit," the minister said.
Ernesto assured Soeharto that Colombia, in leading the NAM,
would continue following the direction taken by Indonesia.
The NAM, under Indonesian leadership, is now emphasizing
economic cooperation among its 111 members and promoting the
resumption of dialog between industrial and developing countries
for partnership in economic development.
Moerdiono said Sudan's President El Bashir invited Indonesian
companies to invest in Sudan's cotton plantations, whose products
will be shipped to Indonesia -- a major textile producer. In
return, Indonesia could export fertilizer, machinery and plant
equipment to Sudan.
Meanwhile, Madagascar's Prime Minister Ravony proposed that
Indonesia and Madagascar avoid unhealthy competition in selling
clove and vanilla on the world market.
"President Soeharto agreed with Ravony's proposal and
suggested that government officials and company executives of the
two countries exchange views on measures to avoid unhealthy
competition on the world market," Moerdiono said.
The minister said that all the leaders meeting with Soeharto
have invited Indonesia to improve economic relations with their
countries.