CERAMAH PRESIDEN SBY DI LSE

 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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