http://www.theage.com.au/world/obama-visits-new-indonesia-with-some-old-problems-20101109-17m06.html
Obama visits new Indonesia with some old problems Tom Allard Indonesia Correspondent Jakarta November 10, 2010 Click to play video Obama's Indonesia visit underway US President Barack Obama meets with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono Tuesday, after arriving earlier in the day in Jakarta. US PRESIDENT Barack Obama arrived in his boyhood home of Jakarta yesterday to woo a country that has been transformed in the 40 years since he left but remains dogged by old problems of rights abuse and corruption. Mr Obama is expected to focus overwhelmingly on the positives during his flying visit, including the country's remarkable emergence as a democracy, its moderate brand of Islam and economic potential. ''We see in Indonesia the intersection of a lot of key American interests, and we see this as a partnership that is very important to the future of American interests in Asia and the world,'' Ben Rhodes, Mr Obama's deputy national security adviser for strategic communications, said in Delhi. Mr Obama dubbed himself ''the Pacific President'' soon after his inauguration and his 10-day swing through Asia tellingly sees him spend time in the four leading democracies. When he lived in Jakarta from 1968 to 1971 with his anthropologist mother Ann Dunham and his Indonesian stepfather Lolo Soetoro, Indonesia was a dictatorship under Suharto, having just emerged from the US-supported purge of communists that led to the deaths of at least 500,000 people. Suharto was toppled in 1998 and died two years ago. A push to have him declared a national hero has been canned, at least for the time being. Mr Obama was to hold meetings yesterday with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ahead of a state dinner where he was to be served two of his favourite childhood dishes, nasi goreng (fried rice) and bakso (meatball soup). Today, he will visit the Istiqlal Mosque, Indonesia's largest, before making a keynote speech at the University of Indonesia. The White House had hoped to arrange a mass event in Jakarta's Merdeka Square, where millions could have attended. But Indonesian authorities scotched those plans for security reasons, and have moved the university address to a smaller venue at the last minute. Mr Obama was forced to cancel two earlier visits, and this trip is much shorter than the three days originally planned. Jakarta Post senior editor Endy Bayuni said the cancelled visits had dampened enthusiasm, but he said Indonesia and the US had the same broad strategic interests. ''Indonesia sees the US as a counterbalance to China in the region, although they would be too diplomatic to say that out loud,'' he said. But endemic corruption and human rights abuses continue to garner headlines and Mr Obama's arrival coincided with protests in Jakarta and West Papua over abuses by security forces in the restive region in Indonesia's far east. The controversy over a recent video depicting torture of West Papuan detainees by soldiers has undermined the government's boast to be a regional leader on human rights. Joshua Kurlantzick, a south-east Asia expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, urged the US leader not to shy away from addressing Indonesia's deep-seated problems. ''The challenge in Jakarta will be . subtly prompting the Indonesian government to move more forcefully on issues that matter to Washington,'' he said, ''including reforming the military, fighting corruption, rebuilding the country's infrastructure, and streamlining the environment for foreign investment.'' [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
