|
Indonesia Australia
The most problematic of Indonesia's neighborly
relations were
those with Australia. The tension inherent in the
population
differential between the two countries in such close
geostrategic
proximity was exacerbated by the very different political
cultures. Criticism of Indonesia in the 1980s and early
1990s by
the Australian press, academics, and politicians provoked
angry
retorts from Jakarta. For example, a story in the early
1980s
about corruption in the president's family in the
Sydney
Morning Herald led to a temporary banning of
Australian
journalists from Indonesia. The implicit long-term
Indonesian
"threat," as it appeared in Australia's defense planning
documents, underlined a latent suspicion in Jakarta that
Australian policy toward Indonesia was based on fear, not
friendship. This perception constantly had to be allayed
by
official Australian visits to Jakarta. For example, there
were
bitter diplomatic exchanges between the two countries
regarding
unruly demonstrations over East Timor at the Indonesian
embassy
in Canberra in November and December 1991. Australian
prime
minister Paul Keating made a point, despite domestic
criticism,
of separating the Dili incident from Indonesian state
policy and
visited Jakarta in April 1992. Once there, he announced
that
bilateral ties between the two countries had "deepened and
broadened."
Data as of November 1992
|
