PRO-PALESTINIAN CONFERENCE IN JAKARTA

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 001000 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, NEA NSC FOR E. PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/21/2018 TAGS: PREL PGOV KISL ID XF SUBJECT: PRO-PALESTINIAN CONFERENCE IN JAKARTA Classified By: Pol/C Joseph Legend Novak, reasons 1.4 (b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: The University of Indonesia recently hosted an international conference on Palestinian-related issues. Members of the press, Indonesian Islamic parties and legislators, and some international guests--including anti-Israel rabbis--participated in the event. President Yudhoyono was invited to give the opening address but did not show up. Members of Hamas and Hezbollah were invited to attend, but did not. The event--scheduled to mark the 60th anniversary of Israel's founding--was anti-Israeli and pro-Palestinian to be sure, but the Indonesians did their best to keep it tame. END SUMMARY. CONFERENCE ON PALESTINIANS ¶2. (C) On May 14-15, the Center for Islam and Middle East Studies at the University of Indonesia, along with an NGO called "the "Voice of Palestine," held a conference entitled: "Freedom and Right of Return: Palestine and 60 years of Ethnic Cleansing (Nakba)." The Speaker of Parliament, Agung Laksono, opened the conference along with Dr. Zahra Mustafawi, Ayatollah Khomeini's daughter. The event advertiQd many speakers, including Khalid Meshal of Hamas, representatives frQ Hezbollah, and the Egyptian Islamic Brotherhood. Contacts told poloff, however, that no one from these organizations attended. PREDICTABLE COMMENTS ¶3. (C) Our contact at the conference told poloff that the conference was basically "predictable" and included discussions regarding Palestinian rights and the status of the peace process. Several speakers harshly decried the founding of Israel and "the displacement" of Palestinians. A couple of "anti-Zionist" rabbis attended the event, including Rabbi Yisroel Dovid Weiss, who spoke about the need to separate Judaism from Zionism. Our contact said one Australian Muslim scholar (name unknown) claimed the Holocaust did not take place, but was challenged by an audience member, which put an end to that discussion. ¶4. (C) A number of Indonesian political personalities spoke, including: -- Indonesian Parliament member Abdillah Toha said he didn't think current U.S. efforts to broker peace in the Middle East would be fruitful. He claimed, "Those negotiations are only to play for time and to make Palestinians tired." -- Former Chair of the Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) and prominent Muslim politician, Amien Rais, said in his speech that Indonesia should give more support to the independence of Palestine. According to media reports, he also said, "John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are all the same, there is no difference among them. The main point is that they guarantee the security of Israel." KEEPING THINGS TAME ¶5. (C) The event was anti-Israeli and pro-Palestinian to be sure. The founding of Israel came in for a great deal of flak, as did the U.S. for supporting Israel. That said, the Indonesians did their best to keep the conference relatively tame. As mentioned, Holocaust deniers were given short shrift. In addition, the GOI did not send many officials to the event, though there were plenty of legislators. Overall, despite the tendentious title of the conference, the event basically underscored the Indonesian government's desire to be constructive regarding the Middle East, although legislators took more extreme positions. HEFFERN