The President's priorities

The President's priorities

With respect to new capital investments from the U.S., Japan
and Vietnam, no dramatic improvement was to be expected. Neither
was there any urgency for improving economic ties in the sort
term to justify President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's trip if it
was merely to meet with President George W. Bush and not an
invitation to address the U.S. Congress, for instance.

In matters of foreign policy, it seems that by now every
government in the world is more than fully aware of Indonesia's
active role in bridging differences between East and West, during
the cold war, or cooperating in South to South issues by
expressing Indonesia's solidarity toward the aspirations of the
developing so-called Third World.

Since the Africa-Asia Conference in Bandung in 1955 and
the formation of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
later, the principles of Indonesia's foreign policy have been
laid down and popularized by the previous administrations and
former presidents.

Many, therefore, believe that Susilo's priorities should have
been at the home front to combat invisible terrorists. This was
where he needed to leave his mark and demonstrate his leadership.

Why is it so difficult to see that the absence of Susilo in
the fight against corruption at the upper level and against the
abuse of power will automatically lead to the stagnation of these
endeavors. It is no exaggeration to state that the hunt for and
arrest of suspected terrorists must be led by the President
himself for they are the real enemies of the national and social
defense.

GANDHI SUKARDI
Jakarta