[Kabar-indonesia] Aust-RI pact 'undemocratic' [+SMH: We'll help Indonesia go nuclear]

[Joyo at aol.com]

also: SMH: We'll help Indonesia go nuclear

ABC News
November 8, 2006

Aust-Indonesia security pact 'undemocratic'

Greens leader Bob Brown has condemned Australia's new
security pact with Indonesia.

Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer is expected to
sign the pact with his Indonesian counterpart Hassan
Wirajuda next week.

The wide-ranging agreement includes cooperation combating
terrorism, law enforcement, border control and defence.

Senator Brown says it will also see the proliferation of
nuclear power in Indonesia and the suppression of the Papuan
independence movement.

"The Howard Government says it will actually suppress people
who want to work towards independence for West Papua," he
said.

"That's undemocratic, it's repugnant to Australian
democratic ideals, cuts right across the freedoms [that]
Australians believe people in this country and elsewhere
should have." National security

Mr Downer says neither Australia nor Indonesia will support
activities that prove a threat to each other's national
security.

"Obviously from their point of view they're worried about
their territorial integrity," he said.

"And the Australian Government has always supported
Indonesia's territorial integrity in modern times and will
continue to do that and won't be supporting, for example,
secessionist activities."

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Sydney Morning Herald
November 8, 2006

We'll help Indonesia go nuclear

Mark Forbes, Herald Correspondent in Jakarta

AUSTRALIA will help Indonesia develop a nuclear program,
conduct joint border protection patrols, expand military and
intelligence ties and agree to suppress Papuan independence
supporters under a historic security treaty to be signed on
Monday.

The groundbreaking security treaty would be comprehensive
but would not include a formal military alliance, sources
close to the negotiations said.
The Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, will fly to
Indonesia to sign the treaty with his counterpart, Hassan
Wirayuda, on Monday. Its details were finalised when the
pair met in New York last month.

The treaty will provide a framework for stronger ties and
expanded co-operation with Indonesia across a wide range of
areas. Sources said it marked a new era in the relationship,
putting an end to the diplomatic rift caused when Australia
granted 43 Papuans asylum earlier this year.

Both nations will agree to respect each other's territorial
integrity. The treaty will recognise Indonesian sovereignty
over Papua and commit both countries to suppressing
independence activists.

The Indonesia and Australia Framework for Security Co-
operation includes a commitment for both nations to help
each other in developing nuclear power for peaceful
purposes. It opens the way for Australia to sell uranium to
Indonesia, which is planning to begin construction of its
first nuclear power plant in 2010.

Both nations will also commit to acting to prevent the
spread of weapons of mass destruction to other countries in
the region.

Intelligence sharing will be boosted, along with joint
counter-terrorism operations, sources confirmed. Australia
would enhance its and Indonesia's border protection with
joint naval and surveillance patrols.

Co-operation will be increased in all areas of law
enforcement, with Australia providing resources to
Indonesian police, prosecutors and immigration and customs
officials.

Military exercises and joint training, including with
Indonesia's Kopassus unit, will also increase. Both
militaries will be told to draw up specific programs for
greater co-operation.

Under six broad principles, the treaty states both nations
should be treated as equals, respect the other's values and
not interfere in internal affairs.

They also state neither country would allow itself to become
a "staging post" for separatist activities - a clause
clearly aimed at an Australian crackdown on anti-Indonesian
activists.

The treaty goes further than a traditional military treaty,
placing more emphasis on broader security issues. It commits
both nations to increasing public understanding about the
other. Education and advertising campaigns are envisaged to
reduce public mistrust, which has shown up in recent
polling.

Announcing the negotiations for a treaty earlier this year,
Mr Downer promised the process would be transparent. "People
will be able to make public submissions long before this
treaty is formally ratified," he said.

However, diplomatic sources confirmed the treaty's details
had been privately finalised last month, and final approval
from the Indonesian cabinet was simply a formality.

Arrangements for the foreign ministers to meet on the island
of Lombok on Monday have already been made.

Under Paul Keating, Australia signed a security treaty with
Indonesia in 1995, but it was torn up by Jakarta in 1999
amid the tensions surrounding Australia's involvement in
East Timor's independence.

The treaty marks a dramatic turnaround after months of
diplomatic turmoil fuelled by Australia's decision to grant
asylum to 43 Papuan independence supporters.

In response, the Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono, froze relations with Australia for three months.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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