South Africa vows to strengthen relations with RI
Veeramalla Anjaiah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
South Africa wants to improve its overall relationship and form a strategic partnership with Indonesia, its Foreign Minister Nkosozana Dlamini Zuma said in Jakarta.
Dlamini Zuma, who arrived in Jakarta on Wednesday, and her Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirayuda met on Friday and signed an agreement to boost economic, political and cultural ties.
"We have signed an agreement to establish a joint commission on bilateral cooperation," Dlamini Zuma, a medical doctor turned politician, told The Jakarta Post in an exclusive interview at the Hotel Mulia Senayan in Jakarta.
The new agreement, which is aimed at increasing bilateral trade and investment, will open a new chapter in the two countries' relations.
The countries have signed agreements on the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion.
South Africa and Indonesia have maintained good relations at the political level but trade between the two countries remains low.
"Our trade with Indonesia is still too low, though it has been growing at a faster rate," Dlamini Zuma, who has been the foreign minister since 1999, said.
Indonesia's exports to South Africa surged to US$233 million in 2003 from $160 million in 2001, and imports grew to $158 million in 2003 from $141 million in 2001.
Overall trade between the two countries in 2003 was $391 million and does not reflect the potential of both countries.
Indonesia has a population of over 220 million and a GDP of $758 billion, while South Africa's population is 42 million and its GDP $456 billion. Both countries are rich and boast abundant natural resources, albeit a majority of their populations are still poor.
South Africa, according to Dlamini Zuma, wants to enhance its cooperation with Indonesia in all areas, not just economically.
"We have a firm political cooperation, but we think this is not enough. We wanted to improve our relations with Indonesia in social and cultural aspects and other areas, like people-to- people contacts and academic exchanges," Dlamini Zuma said.
She said Indonesia and South Africa were developing countries and were facing the same problems like poverty, unemployment, corruption and human rights violations.
"We can share our experiences with Indonesia and Indonesia can share its experiences with us," she added.
South Africa sees Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, as an important country in this part of the world.
"Since our freedom from the apartheid regime in 1994, during the last 10 years we concentrated on establishing democratic institutions, providing basic needs, building infrastructure and establishing diplomatic relations with all the countries in the world. Now our priority is to deepen our relations with some selected important countries. Indonesia is one of these," the minister said.
With this objective and to promote Afro-Asian solidarity, South African President Thabo Mbeki will visit Indonesia in April 2005, she said.
Dlamini Zuma, South Africa's first woman foreign minister, told the Post that improving bilateral relations was not the only item on her agenda during her stay in Jakarta
"The main purpose of my visit to Jakarta is two-fold. The first is to evaluate our existing bilateral relations with Indonesia and what can be done to improve them. The other one is to discuss the preparations for the forthcoming Afro-Asian Summit," Dlamini Zuma told The Jakarta Post
Though the overall tone and tenor of Dlamini Zuma and Hassan were determined by the expanding strategic contours of Indonesian and South African relations, both countries see far bigger things ahead.
Both countries envisage greater cooperation between the peoples of Asia and Africa.
"In 1955 our leaders from Africa and Asia met in Bandung to fight against colonialism and promote solidarity among the people of these two continents. Now the situation has changed and we have so many new challenges. In the spirit of the Bandung Conference, South Africa and Indonesia want to find ways to promote cooperation and solidarity among Africans and Asians through this Afro-Asian Summit," Dlamini Zuma, who was honored by the International Women's Forum in 2002, said.
Indonesia will host the Asian-African Summit in Jakarta and Bandung from April 21 to April 23, 2005.
When asked about the relevance of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and the United Nations after the end of the Cold War, Dlamini Zuma said both NAM and the UN could continue to play a positive role.
"I agree we don't have a Cold War anymore. It doesn't mean we don't have problems or challenges. Both the organizations are still relevant to meet new challenges. We stay together, work together and fight together to achieve our common objectives," she said.