tdaxp

"I have been wondering," by JackH, Simon World, 23 April 2005, http://simonworld.mu.nu/archives/077568.php.

Australia is one of the "Core" countries of the world economy -- fully functioning, deeply integrated, free, and open for business. Indonesia is a "Seam" state -- it doesn't fall into the Gap like North Korea, Yemen, or Congo, but it has significant problems. That's why any effort by Australia to help its neighbor Indonesia along is good news. And why this is good news

First, the set-up

I have been wondering about why Australia's aid package to Indonesia was so large when they announced it - 1 billion dollars Australian, $50 from every man, woman and child in Australia. Could it have been to buy the support of Indonesia in taking part in the ASEAN summit later this year?

And the delivery

During his visit, designed mainly to drum up Australian investments in Indonesia, Yudhoyono charmed his Australian hosts - even going to the extent of promising to support Australia's inclusion at the East Asian summit in December.

In a speech at Parliament House in Canberra, Yudhoyono acknowledged that the relationship between the two close neighbours had seen many ups and downs over the years. "Recently we have begun to relate to each other differently," he observed.

This is great news. The reformist leader of Indonesia is looking for business capital and a closer alliance with Indonesia's southern neighbor. Australia, for her part, is looking to join regional cooperation societies and spend the money it takes to bring Indonesia into the world, now.

(Aside: I have a soft spot for Dr. Yudohoyono, as he campaigned for President while finishing up his graduate thesis. He gave his thesis defense using Power Point about a month before I defended mine. Politics-minded graduate students have to stick together.)

"A House Divided," by Pearl S. Buck, http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1559210346, pg 80, 1935.

"IRAQ: Gunmen seize Indonesian TV journalists," Committee to Protect Journalists, http://www.cpj.org/news/2005/Iraq18feb05na.html, 18 February 2005.

In real, present-day Iraq

Two Indonesian television journalists and their driver were seized by Iraqi gunmen in the city of Ramadi this week, an Indonesian government spokesman told reporters today.

Reporter Meutya Hafid and a cameraman identified as Budiyanto, who work for Indonesia's 24-hour news channel Metro TV, went missing on Tuesday while driving from Amman, Jordan. The journalists had gone to Iraq to cover this week's observance of Ashura, one of the most important religious events for Shiites, according to station officials.

...

At least 23 other journalists have been kidnapped by armed groups in Iraq since April 2004, when insurgents began targeting foreigners for abduction. The most recent was Feb. 4 when gunmen seized Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena, a reporter for the Rome-based daily Il Manifesto, near Baghdad University. On Wednesday, her kidnappers released a video showing her pleading for her life and calling on U.S. and coalition troops to leave Iraq.

As in Pearl S. Buck's novel of Revolutionary China

Sometimes he heard some news of those who plotted, how this one had been found with a bomb hidden in his room to throw at some great man, and once a band of plotters went and beat a certain teacher whom they hated for his friendship with foreigners, but when he heard such things Yuan turned more steadfastly to his books and would not lend his interests elsewhere.

This thuggery and violence is the mark of this old new style of warfare. The enemy's purpose is to destroy relationships between their countrymen and the outside world. Once they have their people isolated they can create their utopian perfect society. We have seen how well that turned out in Russia, China, Korea, and Cambodia.

We cannot let it happen again in Iraq.