Swiss VP visits Indonesia

JAKARTA (JP): Swiss Vice President Flavio Cotti arrived here yesterday for a two-day visit which will see him ink several accords aimed at improving between ties between the countries.

Cotti, who is also Swiss foreign minister, will hold a bilateral talk with President Soeharto, according to the Swiss embassy here.

He will also meet senior government officials including Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas, and Coordinating Minister for Production and Distribution Hartarto.

He is due to sign a Memorandum of Understanding on Technical Cooperation with Alatas.

Later Cotti will visit the National Commission on Human Rights and sign another memorandum.

Prior to leaving Indonesia later this evening, Cotti will launch a clean air campaign here.

Cotti and Swiss Ambassador to Indonesia Hollen Wager flew yesterday to Yogyakarta to pay a courtesy call on Yogyakarta Governor Paku Alam VIII.

The Swiss vice president and the governor held a long discussion in which many questions on the status and history of the Yogyakarta special district came up.

In an exchange of souvenirs, Cotti was given traditional wayang puppets of Kresna and Arjuna by Paku Alam VIII, according to Antara.

Cotti also visited a waste water management plant at the Purwokinanti district, a project financed by the Swiss government and managed under the Yogyakarta Urban Development Project. (10)