World leaders come to town

JAKARTA (JP): Presidents Bill Clinton of the United States and Jiang Zemin of China arrived in Jakarta yesterday as Indonesia plays host, for the next two days at least, to leaders of some of the world's most powerful countries.

Prime ministers Jean Chretien of Canada and Paul Keating of Australia also came in yesterday and Japanese prime minister Tomiichi Murayama has been in town since Saturday.

They are all here for tomorrow's meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders which will be hosted by President Soeharto at the Presidential Palace in nearby Bogor.

All 18 APEC leaders will be represented in Bogor. All but two are represented by their heads of government or state. Taiwan and Hong Kong are represented by ministerial level officials.

While trade and economics will be the sole items on the agenda in Bogor, the leaders will have plenty of time to discuss other issues, including human rights, during various bilateral meetings which they will hold today.

Tonight, Soeharto will host a banquet for all the participants at the Jakarta Convention Center.

It is strictly not a black coat and tie dinner as the host nation is trying to keep the gathering as informal as possible. The government has ordered Indonesia's top batik designer Iwan Tirta to make a shirt for each of the 18 leaders, which they are all expected to wear tonight.

Nine leaders

Nine of the leaders arrived yesterday, including Bill Clinton, whose Air Force 1 plane was the last to touch down at the Halim Perdanakusuma airport at around 10 p.m.

Jiang, Keating, Chretien, and Chilean President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle also flew on special planes.

Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong and Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Julius Chan flew on board the same commercial airliner. They came through the Soekarno-Hatta airport. Thai Prime Minister Chuan Leek Pai arrived a few hours later at the same airport, where the host nation has prepared an equally elaborate red carpet welcome.

Head of the Hong Kong delegation, Financial Secretary Hamish MacLeod, also flew in yesterday.

Today, New Zealand Prime Minister Jim Bolger, Philippine President Fidel V. Ramos, and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Mohamad will arrive. The four early birds are Vincent Siew, Minister of State/Chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development of Chinese Taipei, Brunei leader Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama and South Korean President Kim Young-sam.

The ladies

It will also be a busy time for Indonesian First Lady Mrs. Tien Soeharto as some of the leaders have brought their spouses.

The host nation has organized an equally elaborate ladies program.

Clinton, Keating and Chretien were accompanied by their wives while Ruiz-Tagle came with his wife and daughter. Murayama also came in with his 37-year old daughter.

None of those who arrived yesterday were willing to talk to the press waiting to greet them at the airport, except for Jiang.

In an prepared statement, Jiang, who flew in after a state visit to Malaysia, praised the government of Indonesia for its economic achievement and its increasingly important role in regional and international affairs.

"I am delighted to have this opportunity to attend the second informal leadership meeting of APEC and pay a state visit to the Republic of Indonesia at the invitation of his excellency President Soeharto," he said.

At a press conference in Manila before flying to Jakarta, Clinton said he planned to raise the issue of human rights during his bilateral meetings with a number of other APEC leaders.

"Human rights has been discussed in every meeting I've had and will be discussed in these meetings," he said as quoted by AFP.

Clinton's entourage by far is the largest among the APEC leaders. Arriving from the Philippines, Clinton will also combine his APEC attendance with a state visit to Indonesia, which will begin after Bogor too.

A few days before his arrival, at least three planes have landed at Halim carrying the president and his group's belongings, including several bullet-proof cars, according to an airport officer. For security reasons, a U.S. Air Force fighter has reportedly been brought into the country as well. (pwn/sim/arh)

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