SPEECH BY
H.E. DR. SUSILO BAMBANG YUDHOYONO
PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA
"INDONESIA : REGIONAL ROLE, GLOBAL REACH"
at the
LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL SCIENCE (LSE)
London, 31 March 2009
Your Excellency Sir Howard Davies, Director of the LSE,
Excellencies, Ministers, Members of Parliament, Ambassadors,
Distinguished Members of the Faculty,
Students of this Great Institution of Learning,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure and honour for me to be here. I thank the
London School of Economics and Political Science for inviting me here
today to talk about Indonesia and our worldview.
The reputation of LSE, widely known as one of the world's best
Universities, is well known in Indonesia. I am delighted that many
Indonesians have studied here, and some have even come to work for me.
(Joke : You may take it as a good sign that LSE graduates do get jobs
once they leave campus.) My Minister for Defence obtained his
Doctorate Degree here, and so did my spokesperson, Dr. Dino Patti
Djalal - both under the supervision of the late Dr. Michael Leifer,
one of the best experts on Southeast Asian Affairs ever produced by
Great Britain.
I also wish to commend the LSE which through IDEAS Centre for
International Affairs, Diplomacy and Grand Strategy has just set up
the Southeast Asia International Affairs Programme headed by Dr. Munir
Majid.
I am glad to see here today so many young faces glowing with optimism.
So let me begin by telling you a story about optimism. This is a
true story reported in the mass media. During one of the sessions at
the latest World Economic Forum in Davos, the panelists noted that all
the talk about the global economy was consistently pessimistic. All
gloom and doom. And no silver lining.
Then one asked the question: "Isn't there one optimist in this room at all?"
And another answered: "Yes, if we can find an Indonesian. Is there an
Indonesian with us here?"
I like this anecdote because, frankly, optimism is what has made
Indonesia what we are today. The story of Indonesia has not always
been an easy one, but it is a remarkable one. An epic story of
survival against the odds.
Just a few years ago, Indonesia made headlines around the world -
including here in the BBC, the Daily Telegraph, The Guardian - for all
the troubles that beset us: economic crisis, East Timor, Aceh, ethnic
conflicts, terrorism, political crises. Back then, it seemed nothing
could go right with Indonesia.
Some circles predicted that, after East Timor broke away from us,
Indonesia would fall into "Balkanization" . It would shatter into bits
and pieces. Others thought that Indonesia would crumble under the
weight of a disorderly democratic transition.
And why not? Between 1998 and 2004, we had four
Presidents - Soeharto, Habibie, Abdurrachman Wahid and Megawati
Soekarnoputri - an average of one President every 1,5 year. Thomas
Friedman called Indonesia a "messy state.. too large to fail, too
messy to work". But former US Secretary of State Colin Powell was
perceptive enough to cite Indonesia as "the most misunderstood country
in the world" and I think he was right.
But that picture of disorder and uncertainty no longer represents us
today. After all our trials and tribulations, Indonesia today has
become a remarkably resilient country.
In a world wrecked by a devastating financial tsunami, Indonesia last
year registered 6 % growth - among the three highest in Asia. This
year we expect a slower but still respectable 4,5 % growth.
In a world that is still festering with ethnic conflicts, Indonesia
has become more united by resolving the conflicts in Aceh, and
promoting political and social reforms in Papua.
Today, Indonesia is the third largest democracy in the world - after
India and the United States. We are Southeast Asia's largest and
arguably strongest democracy.
And not just a democracy by name - we are a vibrant democracy, with a
free press, a multi-party system and regular elections. We are a
functioning democracy that has maintained our brand of moderation and
tolerance.
And we have been able to achieve that rare thing among countries
undergoing transition : that is, to marry democracy with stability.
When my current term ends in October this year, insya allah, my
Government will be the first since reformasi began to complete a full
5-year term. Perhaps this is why The Economist stated that "Indonesia
sets an example" in our democratic development.
Indeed, Indonesia in recent years has undergone a "quiet revolution" :
by the end of this year, every Governor, regent, mayor, local
Parliament throughout Indonesia will have been directly elected by the
people. This has not only dramatically changed the political
landscape, it has also turned the political pyramid upside down. And
all this is happening in an orderly manner, without chaos and
bloodshed.
This month, we will hold Parliamentary elections, and Presidential
elections in July. What is pertinent with this year's elections is NOT
who will win, but what it means historically for us : after 3
elections - in 1999, 2004, and 2009 - Indonesia's democracy has
achieved a point of no return. Indonesians not only accept democracy
as a fact of life, but also embrace it passionately and are willing to
defend it when it is under threat.
Indeed, Indonesia is now widely regarded as a living proof that
democracy, Islam and modernity can go hand-in-hand harmoniously.
Our reputation for tolerance and harmony is not something that
happened just now. We have been working hard at it since time
immemorial, in the process developing and nurturing a tradition of
consultation toward consensus, "Musyawarah untuk Mufakat." The
majority does not impose its will on the minority. There is a thorough
process of consultation before consensus is reached, a process in
which all views are expressed and all interests are taken into
account-including those of minorities. That is how we achieve harmony
in an immensely pluralistic society.
And because throughout our history, the cultures of three Oriental,
Islamic and Western civilizations have found a home in Indonesia, we
have been given a new role. We have come to be regarded as the
natural bridge between the Western world on one hand and the Islamic
and Oriental worlds on the other. And "bridges" - strategic bridges,
generational bridges, technological bridges, cultural bridges,
economic bridges, religious bridges - are what the 21st century world
order will need plenty of.
This is why Indonesia has been organizing and sponsoring interfaith,
intercultural and inter-media dialogues, not only among our national
communities but also among nations in the Asia-Pacific region. We have
also been co-sponsoring similar dialogues on an interregional and
global basis.
In fact, I have vigorously pursued what I call an "all directions
foreign policy", a post-Cold War 21st century foreign policy outlook
where Indonesia seeks a "million friends and zero enemy".
That is because we know that our international engagement is the key
to our success, to our security, and to our prosperity. Our economy
cannot survive while the global economy collapses. We cannot have a
destiny that is separate from that of our immediate neighborhood,
Southeast Asia, and our region, East Asia.
Indeed, it is NOT ONLY Indonesia that is rapidly changing. Southeast
Asia is also a very different place today. It has experienced
fundamental geopolitical and geo-economic shifts. It is no longer the
war-torn region of yesteryear.
Once divided by Cold War politics, Southeast Asia has become the ASEAN
region. With the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement already in force, we have
become the ASEAN Economic Community. The ten economies of ASEAN have
become a single market for goods and services and a single production
base.
Several decades ago, Southeast Asia was a cockpit for Cold War
strategic rivalry and inter-state as well as internal wars. Today, no
external major powers is involved against another in a proxy war in
our region, and no ASEAN member is at war against another. While
internal conflicts still exist in some parts, these are so low in
intensity that do not affect the overall stability of the region.
And today, many external powers have signed on to the ASEAN Treaty of
Amity and Cooperation - contributing to our region's strategic
stability : Australia, China, Japan, India, Russia, South Korea and so
on. With this Treaty, signatories and acceding states renounce the
use of force and bind themselves to the peaceful settlement of
disputes. We hope that the United States will accede to the Treaty
soon, and there are signs that it just might happen.
A key part of the region's transformation is ASEAN's effort to become
an ASEAN Community by 2015. The envisioned ASEAN Community would rest
on three pillars: the ASEAN Politico-security Community, the ASEAN
Economic Community and the ASEAN Socio-cultural Community.
To boost the effort to build these three pillars and ultimately the
ASEAN Community itself, the member states formulated and adopted an
ASEAN Charter, designed to retool and adapt ASEAN for 21st century
challenges. Last December, the Charter, which gives ASEAN a legal
personality and greatly strengthens it, entered into force.
Indonesia worked hard to ensure that, through the Charter, ASEAN gets
its politics right. And to ensure that its members are committed to
democracy and democratization, and to the promotion and protection of
human rights. In our time, we in ASEAN can no longer afford to be
allergic to democracy and human rights.
Thus, Indonesia pushed for a provision stipulating the creation of a
Regional Human Rights body. Hence, by virtue of the Charter, all ASEAN
members are committed to the values of democracy and human
rights-including Myanmar.
Now Myanmar is legally bound by the Charter to make substantive
progress in the implementation of its own Roadmap to Democracy, and to
attain national reconciliation. It is legally bound by the Charter to
make sure that the elections it will hold next year are free and
democratic.
I notice that in the West, discussions on Myanmar tend to focus on the
"democracy" aspect. This is of course important. But there is another
aspect which do not get enough attention: Myanmar's struggle to
maintain its national unity and territorial integrity. We simply
cannot allow Myanmar to break apart, because that will lead to a
bloodbath and a humanitarian disaster that would undermine regional
order and stability.
In my engagement with Myanmar's leaders, I have always stressed in no
uncertain terms Indonesia's full support for Myanmar's national unity.
And I do believe that Indonesia's historical experience, having gone
through difficult periods of transition from authoritarian Government
to democracy as well as ethnic conflicts, is relevant to the solution
of the problem of Myanmar.
We must therefore help ensure that at the end of the day Myanmar will
emerge as a democratic and united country.
I also believe that any attempt to isolate Myanmar will be
counter-productive. Myanmar is entering a critical phase in the
run-up to elections next year, the final stages of its own seven-step
Roadmap to democracy. The challenge here is for Myanmar to show that
there is a credible and inclusive process of democratic transition at
work. This is therefore the time for greater - not less - engagement,
especially by Myanmar's neighbors. I know this is also what the UN
Secretary-General and his Personal Representative Professor Ibrahim
Gambari are trying to do.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
While ASEAN looks after its own members, like Myanmar, it is also an
outward-looking regional organization. Thus, ASEAN leads the shaping
of a new architecture of the East Asia region. This can be seen from
the processes of ASEAN Plus Three, which groups ASEAN with China,
Japan and South Korea, and the East Asia Summit, which groups the
ASEAN Plus Three countries with India, Australia and New Zealand.
In 1997, ASEAN Plus Three (APT) was established to address the Asian
financial crisis. The ASEAN Plus Three Process gained such momentum
that in 2004, ASEAN launched the idea of an East Asia Summit. To some,
the East Asia Summit should comprise the ASEAN Plus Three countries.
But Indonesia pushed for a more inclusive idea of East Asia, one that
embraced India, Australia and New Zealand.
Thus, ASEAN redefined the notion of East Asia so that it is no longer
just a geographical, racial or cultural entity-but an entity formed
over many years of habitual and intensive consultation and cooperation
between ASEAN and its dialogue partners.
Like Indonesia itself with its immense diversity of ethnic cultures,
East Asia is made of countries that are widely varied, but are bound
together and made one by a commonality of purpose and values.
With this concept of a more inclusive East Asia, ASEAN remains at the
centre not only geographically but also in terms of occupying the
driver's seat in this important process.
This is important because East Asia will continue to experience, in
the short medium and long-terms, changing dynamics of power
relationships. While power relationships remain fluid, it is
important that a new equilibrium be reached, one that would provide
mutual accommodation between the major powers, but in the form of a
win-win relationship that would not be at the expense of medium and
smaller powers.
And thus one day when East Asia is better crafted and more firmly
institutionalized, the United States, Russia and the European Union
could join the East Asia process as observers.
This is not to say that East Asia will become the Oriental clone of
the European Union. Historically, culturally and even economically,
the EU nations are so much more similar to one another than us in East
Asia. At present we in East Asia are too diverse to place ourselves
under a supra-government or to form a superbureaucracy. But we can
integrate in real, dynamic and effective ways.
For instance, ASEAN has completed-or is nearly completing-a process of
negotiating free trade area agreements with six dialogue partners,
which can lead to the establishment of an East Asia free trade area by
2012 or 2015 at the latest. Here, we are talking about a group
involving an aggregate population of 3.6 billion, and of combined
powerhouses in Asia.
In a way, this will repeat the process within ASEAN soon after its
founding in Bangkok, which makes use of economic cooperation as the
driving force of its integration. Thus the new East Asia will be
consolidated first through a process of economic integration before it
goes all-out for political cooperation.
Nevertheless, we have made an early effort at political cooperation.
Last December, Indonesia organized the Bali Democracy Forum, the first
inter-governmental forum in Asia about democracy. At non-governmental
levels, the region has had countless discussions on democracy. But
this was the first time that a home-grown, Asia-wide dialogue among
government officials took place about democracy.
Indonesia will sustain and support the Forum through an Institute of
Peace and Democracy. Friends in the international community have
indicated that they will help us in this effort.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I have presented to you Indonesia's vision of the regional
architecture of East Asia. It is a regional architecture that will
strive for balance-balance among the component powers of that
architecture and balance between economic development and political
development.
I realize well enough, however, that it is not enough to have a
regional vision. We must also have a global vision, most especially at
a time when the whole world, without exception, is reeling from the
impact of a global economic and financial crisis.
That is why Indonesia is deeply involved in the work of the G-20,
which is humankind's best hope for the solution-or the beginning of a
solution-to the crisis that has engulfed us all. And that is why I am
here in London today-to attend the G-20 Summit after visiting this
nice institution.
The G-20 was created in 1999 after the 1998 Asian Financial Crisis as
a forum of finance ministers and central bank governors.. Given the
severity of the global financial crisis that broke out in the second
half of last year, the G20 has been elevated to the Leaders level with
the first summit in Washington last November. Today, we are having
our second meeting in London and we hope there will be a meeting later
in the year in Asia.
The G20 Summit has become de facto the world economy steering
committee because it represents the major economies in the world,
accounting for 80 percent of GDP and 90 percent of world trade.
Developed and developing countries, and geographical regions are
represented in this forum.
In facing this very serious challenge of overcoming the worst global
recession in 60 years, the G20 Summit is crucial to the building of
global confidence and global togetherness to get us out of this
complex financial collapse, which has had a devastating impact on the
world economy.
Much has been done and achieved since the last meeting. We have all
undertaken countercyclical measures and the Ministers of Finance,
Central Bank Governors and their officials have worked on an agenda of
reform of the financial architecture and international financial
institutions.
However, more needs to be done. Let me share with you a few points
that I will bring up at the G20 Summit.
First, we urge the US and other developed countries to give priority
to the cleaning up of the toxic assets in the financial system.
Otherwise it would be difficult to get financial flows going.
Second, since the Washington G20 Summit, Indonesia has sent a very
strong message that in resolving this crisis we must not forget the
developing and emerging countries that have limited resources to
prevent the drying up of liquidity, investment and capital on their
economies.
These developing and emerging countries, have worked hard at building
up their economies, institutions and governance structures.. They have
undertaken difficult reforms - and achieved remarkable progress toward
development goals such as poverty reduction. They must not be
punished. They must not be left to suffer unmanageable increases in
poverty.
There must be a global expenditure fund to serve as buffer and to
provide these countries with needed financing so that their budgets
can sustain development goals. There has been progress on this idea
and we hope that there will be an announcement regarding the
availability of this fund at this meeting.
Third, there must be financial architecture reforms and disciplines
that will prevent another financial bubble from creating such
unprecedented havoc, not only in the countries where the bubble
originated --- but also in the rest of the world.
Fourth the multilateral agencies-the IMF, the World Bank and others--
must rise to the challenge of this unprecedented world economic
crisis. This means greater resources, flexibility in utilizing these
resources and the reform and improvement of the governance of these
institutions. This will entail a better system of representation at
these institutions to reflect the changing geo-economics of the world.
Finally, I also believe that the world economy will not recover
without the recovery of the real economy. Therefore, we must ensure
that there will be no increased restrictions that will hamper the
flows of trade, investment, capital and even people. The surest way
to prevent protectionism is to ensure that the major economies,
(especially the US and India) return to the WTO Doha Round
negotiations as soon as possible.
The process of recovery, the rebuilding of the financial architecture
and the reform of multilateral institutions will take time. Over time
it is likely that the G20 Summit will evolve into a regular summit and
will be very focused on steering the world economy toward changes that
will get us back to global stability.
Indonesia will therefore continue to be deeply involved in the
processes of the G20 to ensure that the interests of developing
nations, especially Asian countries, are taken into account. At the
same time I can also assure you that in the face of this crisis, for
Indonesia protectionism is not our choice. That is a firm political
commitment.
One other message that I will try to put across is this:
Man does not live by bread alone. He must also have his freedom and
his ethics. By the same token, nations do not survive by the operation
of the market alone. They must also get their governance and their
politics right.
That is the lesson that the United States learned in the months
leading to its latest presidential elections. That is the bitter
lesson that Indonesia learned in the midst of the Asian Crisis eleven
years ago. That is the insight behind the ASEAN Charter.
And that is the insight that will save us all from this global
financial and economic crisis, if we accept it and act accordingly.
To conclude, no less than the future of humankind is at stake in the
work that we in the G20 are about to do here in London. Indonesia will
do its part in this great undertaking aimed at overcoming the crisis.
I hope that our partners in the G20, the developed economies as well
as the emerging economies, will also do theirs.
I thank you.
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