[Kabar-indonesia] A nuclear Indonesia could be a reality with Australia's help

[Joyo at aol.com]

also: ST: Greenpeace: Nuclear power is risky

The Straits Times (Singapore)
Tuesday, November 14, 2006

A nuclear Indonesia could be a reality with Australia's help

Roger Marnard, Australia Correspondent

Sydney - THERE are strong grounds for saying that the new
treaty reads like an Indonesian wish list.

Firstly, it appears to be getting a more acquiescent
Australia on the vexed issue of separatism.

Secondly, it stands to get help with its nuclear energy
programme and there is the strong likelihood of being able
to buy Australian uranium eventually.

But both subjects have the potential to cause a major
headache for Australia further down the line. There are also
implications for Indonesia's other neighbours including
Singapore if Jakarta presses ahead with its nuclear
development programme.

An earthquake in Java, which has a long history of
geological instability, could have devastating consequences
for the region if it led to the release of radioactive fall-
out from a nuclear power station.

Models run by the Australian National University have
suggested that Singapore, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Brunei
and Thailand would be particularly vulnerable if there was
an accident between the months of March and November because
of the wind direction.

Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland
would also be at substantial risk from a nuclear cloud
emanating from Indonesia from December to February.

So why is Australia so keen to support Jakarta's nuclear
aspirations?

One answer could be the ready availability of uranium on
Indonesia's doorstep.

Australia has about 40 per cent of the world's uranium and
is keen to sell its precious resource to other nations.

While there is no suggestion that Indonesia's nuclear
programme is based on anything but a desire to meet its
future energy commitments, there are nevertheless those who
fear another agenda.

The prospect of a nuclear armed Indonesia on Australia's
doorstep would have the potential to spark a nuclear arms
race in the region.

And that is not as unrealistic as it might seem.

Back in the early 1960s, the late President Sukarno talked
about developing nuclear weapons, at a time when Australia
ordered F-111 aircraft which could be modified to carry
nuclear weapons.

But that remains a long-term concern.

A more pressing issue to come out of yesterday's agreement
relates to territorial integrity.

One of the treaty's clauses commits both countries to avoid
supporting 'activities by any person or entity which
constitute a threat to the stability, sovereignty or
territorial integrity of the other party'.

In other words - keep out of our domestic affairs.

Jakarta has always been sensitive to Canberra's criticism of
the way it has treated secessionists in the past,
particularly in West Papua.

When Canberra granted sanctuary to 43 West Papuan asylum
seekers earlier this year, Jakarta denounced the move.

Many fear that under the terms of this latest pact it will
be difficult to openly criticise Indonesia on such sensitive
issues.

Australia's Defence Minister Brendan Nelson insisted over
the weekend that the treaty would not stop people from
expressing their views in a lawful manner.

'But the Australian government is not, has not, and will
not, encourage actively separatism in Indonesia,' he added.

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The Straits Times (Singapore)
Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Greenpeace: Nuclear power is risky

INDONESIA does not need nuclear energy as an answer to
climate change or for energy security, an environmental
watchdog said.

'All the associated risks (of nuclear power) when placed in
an area with a volatile geological structure like Indonesia
will only pose a danger to the Indonesian public,' said Mr
Nur Hidayati, a campaigner with environmentalist group
Greenpeace.

Mr Nur was speaking after the release of the International
Energy Agency's 2006 World Energy Outlook last week.

IEA said in its report that nuclear power could help reduce
carbon dioxide emissions and provide reliable electricity in
the future but Greenpeace has described the report as
'misguided solutions'.

Indonesians 'have already suffered from many disasters',
said Mr Nur, according to Agence France-Presse.

The Indonesian archipelago sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire
where continental plates meet, causing frequent seismic and
volcanic activity.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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