|
Indonesia Big Brother of South East Asia, Says Megawati
JAKARTA, Aug 27
(IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri who is on a tour to South East Asian nations (ASEAN) said Saturday that Indonesia should be seen as the big brother of the economic bloc.
The biggest member of the ASEAN, Indonesia is currently plagued by economic downfall and separatism in several provinces. It however has huge potential for growth that could spur it to lead the region on the economic front.
On Sunday Megawati ended her visit to Singapore, the tiny rich neighbor that is expected to play major role in Indonesia's economic revival.
Experts in economic fields expect the ASEAN community's economic slump spearheaded by the 1997 financial crisis to end soon due to the return of Indonesia on the scene.
Megawati said Indonesia's commitment to the ASEAN would forge a new ASEAN entity where economic growth will be on the agenda.
The ASEAN region is the cornerstone of Indonesia's foreign policy and the president's visit to the other member countries has helped alleviate the political climate.
"We should not delay ASEAN 's rejuvenation. The longer we delay, the harder it will be to rejuvenate the ASEAN," said Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong.
Prime Minister Tong broke the protocol on Friday by meeting Megawati at the Changi airport during her arrival to Singapore, to show the importance of Indonesia to the Singapore economy.
He and Megawati said a stronger, more cohesive and vibrant ASEAN would help individual countries 'better compete against bigger economies and other regional groupings, and gives us more influence internationally.'
Megawati spoke of "our joint endeavor to make a more stable and prosperous ASEAN".
The ASEAN has been the fastest growing area in the world in the 1980's when the world richest economies showed no hesitation to invest billions of dollars in Stock Markets, financial markets and industries in the region.
This helped the ASEAN become the most aggressive and secure investment area on earth, attracting both offshore and onshore financing for development.
Goh Chok Tong said Megawati's election as president has brought new hope to the people of Indonesia and ASEAN.
"Your commitment to the national unity of Indonesia, its constitution and the rule of law, and your stand against corruption, collusion and nepotism, will lay a strong moral foundation for building your new Indonesia," Tong added.
He was confident she would lead Indonesia to recovery and restored investor confidence.
Megawati arrived in Kuala Lumpur on Monday on the final stop of her tour. She might ask for advice from Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammed on how to handle the economic and separatist crisis in Indonesia.
The ASEAN consists of countries in the south East Asian region, including Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Thailand and Laos.
The regional grouping lost its glamour when it proved incapable of dealing with the financial collapse that affected all the economies of the region.
It also failed to act as a united front during the crisis, causing serious rifts between member nations. At the peak of the Asian crisis, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines were in conflict over several economic issues.
|
