ASIA-PACIFIC DEMOCRACY INITIATIVE -- GOI SAYS IT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001895 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, DRL/FOR FOR CCAMPONOVO, S/P, DRL; G (KCURRIE) NSC FOR EPHU, PLETTOW E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/10/2018 TAGS: PREL KDEM ID KS SUBJECT: ASIA-PACIFIC DEMOCRACY INITIATIVE -- GOI SAYS IT WILL PARTICIPATE IN SEOUL MEETING REF: A. STATE 107528 ¶B. JAKARTA 1115 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Indonesia has agreed to attend the Asia-Pacific Democracy Partnership initiative (APDP) meeting in Seoul on October 31. Umar Hadi, Director for Public Diplomacy at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DEPLU), confirmed to DepPol/C and the South Korean Pol/C on October 10 that the GOI would send a senior representative to Seoul. After listening to the joint U.S./Republic of Korea points, Hadi said the GOI agrees that the Indonesian-proposed Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) and APDP are complementary. Regarding BDF, Hadi confirmed that the first meeting would take place in December 2008 in Indonesia. END SUMMARY. GOI WILL ATTEND SEOUL MEETING ¶2. (C) There has been some positive movement in the GOI's attitude toward the APDP initiative. Per Ref A, DepPol/C and ROK Political Counselor Kim Moon-hwan met jointly with Hadi on October 10 to request Indonesia's participation in the October 31 APDP Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) in Seoul. Speaking first, Kim emphasized the importance to ROK that Indonesia attend, as the world's third largest democracy and the leading democracy in Southeast Asia. He added that the ROK and the U.S. are among Indonesia's best friends. APDP and the BDF are not conflicting but rather complement each other. He also asked that Indonesia chair one of the three SOM sessions, on APDP structure. He said the ROK was drafting a more detailed concept paper jointly with the U.S. which he would share soon. ¶3. (C) DepPol/C added that the USG gives the highest priority to GOI participation. He explained that participation in Seoul does not mean formal membership and reemphasized the complementary nature of BDF and APDP. ¶4. (C) In something of a shift of GOI views on the APDP, Hadi said the GOI plans to attend. FM Wirajuda told Hadi that he would like Hadi to attend but Hadi said that as an office director he is not of high enough rank to represent at the deputy minister level. (Note: Hadi is very close to Wirajuda, our key contact regarding APDP, and the architect of the BDF.) The GOI is considering sending the Department of Foreign Affairs' Director General for Policy Analysis, which would be roughly equivalent to a deputy minister, Hadi added. COMPLEMENTARY PROPOSALS ¶5. (C) Speaking more generally, Hadi noted that the GOI sees no conflicts between APDP and BDF goals. Regarding BDF, he said it differs with APDP in that it is inclusive of both democracies and aspiring democracies. BDF's priority will be international cooperation through the sharing of technical knowledge. It will meet annually at the ministerial level and monthly at the technical level. He hopes that U.S. experts will participate. A BDF secretariat, the Institute of Peace and Democracy, will be set up in Bali, hopefully with international contributions to support it. ¶6. (C) BDF will hold its first meeting in Bali, December 10-11, fully funded by the GOI, Hadi said. All East Asia and Middle East countries, including Australia and New Zealand, will be invited. President Yudhoyono will invite heads of states from ASEAN Plus-3 nations. The U.S. and Europe will be invited to send observers, he said, although the GOI is still working this out. Invitations will go out next week. Wirajuda plans to hold a meeting with diplomats from all BDF JAKARTA 00001895 002 OF 002 participants in the near future to announce the first meeting, with a separate meeting to explain BDF to observer nations. A SHIFT BY THE GOI ¶7. (C) Indonesia has come a long way from its initial skepticism toward APDP as competing with BDF to agreeing to send a senior official to attend in Seoul. It is still not clear whether the GOI wants to participate as an APDP member or as an observer. That said, they seem, at this time, much more receptive to the APDP idea than they have in the past. Their BDF proposal still seems to be in gestation, but it merits close scrutiny given that it is a high priority for the GOI and seems set to kick off in December, per Hadi's remarks. HUME