SCENESETTER FOR HDAC CODEL VISIT JUNE 30 TO JULY 2

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 001040 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV KDEM ID SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR HDAC CODEL VISIT JUNE 30 TO JULY 2 JAKARTA 00001040 001.2 OF 003 ///ZFR//////////ZFR//////////ZFR//////////ZFR /// PLEASE ZFR JAKARTA 1040 AND ALL ASSOCIATED MCN'S MESSAGE WAS CANCELLED BY DRAFTER. WE ZOB. ///ZFR//////////ZFR//////////ZFR//////////ZFR /// JAKARTA 00001040 002 OF 003 successful legislative elections since the advent of democracy in 1998. They were peaceful and Indonesians accepted the results. This was also the first time Indonesian voters were able to directly choose individual representatives. The previous elections were based on party lists. Voters embraced this move and many hope it will strengthen member-constituent relations. The new Parliament will be seated October 1, 2009. You will meet with both current and incoming Parliament members. There was a high turnover of members in the April election, so many of our current interlocutors will not hold seats next term. Seventy percent of the incoming Parliament Members are new; many of them have varied backgrounds and no legislative experience. ¶9. (SBU) Indonesians are increasingly confident in their democracy. Through free press and active civil society, they are quick to demand corrections when the system is not working. Many chastised the Election Commission (KPU) for its ineffective administration of the legislative elections. Voter list irregularities effectively disenfranchised millions of voters, according to NGOs. The Constitutional Court is reviewing allegations of fraud and other election dispute cases until June 24. Its decisions, considered impartial, are changing the outcomes of some of the legislative election results and re-instilling confidence in the credibility of the election process. Significantly, one of the court's decisions may mean that the current Speaker of the House, Agung Laksono (with whom you will have a courtesy call July 1),could lose his seat. ¶10. (SBU) Nine parties won parliamentary seats April 9. The top three parties are secular nationalist parties, followed by four Islamic-oriented parties and two parties led by former generals. President Yudhoyono's Partai Demokrat (PD) was the winner, with 20.85% of the popular vote, followed by Vice President Kalla's party, Golkar, and Megawati's party, The Indonesian Party of Struggle, (PDI-P). PEACE IN ACEH: NEXT CHALLENGE-GOVERNANCE ¶11. (SBU) As part of the Helsinki MOU, six local political parties participated in Aceh's provincial legislative elections. Local Partai Aceh (PA) won a near majority at the legislative level (33 of 69 seats) and a majority of seats at many of the local levels. PA leaders have requested legislative capacity building from us. PA's ability to govern will directly affect the prospects for continued peace and development in Aceh. INDONESIA: AN IMPORTANT PARTNER ON BURMA ISSUES ¶12. (SBU) Indonesia has played an important behind-the-scenes role on encouraging democracy and human rights in Burma. President Yudhoyono's Bali Democracy Forum, attended by Burma, is meant to lure the Burmese regime into learning about the benefits of democracy. Indonesia has taken the lead along with Australia in the Bali Process to deal with irregular migration issues. A key element of this is pressing Burma to grant citizenship to Rohingyas and to respect their rights. CHALLENGES IN PAPUA ¶13. (SBU) Indonesia continues to struggle with governance and development challenges in its eastern most provinces of Papua and West Papua. Despite vast natural resource wealth, Papuans continue to lag behind other Indonesians-a situation that fuels discontent. Implementation of the region's 2001 Special Autonomy Law has lagged due to the provincial government's lack of capacity and the reluctance of some central government ministries to cede control over critical areas. The Indonesian police and military have made significant progress on human rights in Papua although incidents still sometimes occur. A leading government think thank has recently published a plan-The Papua Roadmap-that charts a course for addressing Papua's development deficit and political grievances. However, we do not expect any action on the plan until a new government takes office. Mission is aware of Congress' interest in the region, and will continue to pay close attention to developments. MISSION/HDAC COOPERATION CRUCIAL TO PARTNERSHIP ¶14. (SBU) The U.S. Embassy has been continuously engaged with the DPR, and USAID provides direct assistance to the JAKARTA 00001040 003 OF 003 DPR. HDAC programs are a welcome and complementary initiative that has facilitated progress on a range of issues affecting U.S. interests in Indonesia. For example, the Embassy has engaged key DPR decision makers to encourage implementing legislation for the Cape Town Treaty. This legislation allowed EX-IM to provide a $1 billion loan to Indonesian companies Lion Air and Garuda Air to purchase Boeing airplanes. Our close cooperation with the DPR will be key for institutional capacity building and democratic reform, particularly since the new DPR will consist of mainly new, inexperienced members. We appreciate the opportunity to continue to jointly encourage Indonesia's growing democracy, and expand the U.S.-Indonesia comprehensive partnership. NORTH