BALI DEMOCRACY FORUM -- FIRST MEETING TO TAKE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 002072 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, DRL/FO FOR CCAMPONOVO, S/P, DRL; G (KCURRIE) NSC FOR EPHU, PLETTOW E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/10/2018 TAGS: PREL KDEM PGOV ID SUBJECT: BALI DEMOCRACY FORUM -- FIRST MEETING TO TAKE PLACE IN DECEMBER REF: A. JAKARTA 1970 ¶B. JAKARTA 1895 ¶C. JAKARTA 211 Classified By: DCM John A. Heffern, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda briefed diplomats about the inaugural meeting of the Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) scheduled for December 10-11 in Bali. Governments from throughout Asia and the Middle East have been invited to participate while other countries--such as the U.S.--can send observers. The FM stressed that one purpose of the BDF was to create a stage for Indonesia--the third largest democracy in the world--to promote democracy and human rights in the region. Wirajuda said the BDF and the USG's Asia-Pacific Democracy Partnership (APDP) initiative are complementary. Ambassador Hume commended the Foreign Minister for Indonesia's role in promoting democracy and human rights in the region and offered general support for the Indonesian initiative. END SUMMARY. BRIEFING IN JAKARTA ¶2. (C) In a November 6 briefing for North American and European diplomats, Foreign Minister Wirajuda announced that the first meeting of the BDF was slated to take place December 10-11 in Bali. Ambassador Hume and DCM attended the briefing. Invited participants will include countries from the Middle East and Asia, both democracies and non-democracies. UN SYG Ban also has been invited. President Yudhoyono will host the meeting, which has invited leaders from the ASEAN Plus-3, in addition to ministers from other participating countries. Non-participating countries, such as the U.S., can send observers. WIDE-RANGING DEMOCRACY AGENDA ¶3. (SBU) The embryonic BDF initiative seems to be wide-ranging in its goals. A BDF backgrounder prepared by the GOI and distributed at the briefing explained that the forum "will allow governments to discuss issues of common concern such as: regular and genuine elections; multi-party systems in a pluralistic and tolerant society; effective parliaments; independent judiciary system; the rule of law; protection and promotion of human rights; good governance; creating an active and vibrant media; benefits of an open and competitive economy that ensures social justice for all; forging strong and dynamic civil society; and, the role of professional military in a democratic society." ¶4. (SBU) BDF will be a "forum" rather than an organization, with annual ministerial meetings followed by ad hoc events and technical workshops. The backgrounder distributed at the briefing cited 20 possible workshops for the future, focused on the above-mentioned topics. To support the Forum, the GOI has established the Institute for Peace and Democracy at Bali's flagship University of Udayana. Under President Yudhoyono's patronage, the Institute will organize the workshops, conduct research, publish papers and set up networks among experts. PULLING ALL OF ASEAN TOWARDS DEMOCRACY ¶5. (C) Wirajuda emphasized at the briefing that a primary objective of the BDF will be to help Indonesia promote democracy and human rights in ASEAN. Indonesia has a high standing to do so. There has been an economic gap between the six original ASEAN members and the four new ones. Existing fora in Asia have focused on economic and security issues. JAKARTA 00002072 002 OF 002 ¶6. (C) However, there has been an "allergy" to discussing human rights and democracy on the regional level, Wirajuda added. With the passage of the ASEAN Charter, the ten members are committed to the path of human rights. By linking the ASEAN Charter and the Bali Forum, Wirajuda made clear that the GOI believes the BDF would help create a climate for more effective human rights in the region. ¶7. (C) Wirajuda alluded to possible requests in the future to support the BDF and its institute. The diplomat appointed by Wirajuda to manage the BDF, Umar Hadi, Director of Public Diplomacy, told us previously that the GOI would welcome U.S. expert participation in workshops (Ref C). OBSERVERS FROM U.S. WELCOMED ¶8. (C) Hadi also told DepPol/C that Wirajuda discussed with him who the GOI might invite from the U.S. to come to Bali. An invitation letter will go out following a planning meeting to be held on November 10-11. Hadi said the GOI considered inviting former presidents Carter or Clinton, or perhaps a prominent academic, but probably will not do so for the first meeting. He said the GOI would welcome an official from Washington attending but that representation from Mission would also be fine. ¶9. (C) At the briefing, Wirajuda stressed that the BDF and the USG's APDP initiatives are complementary. Ambassador Artauli Tobing, Director General for Policy Planning and Development at the Department of Foreign Affairs (Deplu), represented Indonesian at the October 31 APDP meeting in Seoul, in a signal that the GOI now supports APDP after initial reluctance that it might clash with the BDF (Ref A). HUME