AFGHANISTAN -- URGING INDONESIA TO DO MORE

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 001237 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, S/SRAP (KAREN HANRAHAN); SCA/A (ARIELLA VIEHE); EUR/RPM (AARON COPE) NSC FOR J. BADER E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/24/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV EAID ID AF SUBJECT: AFGHANISTAN -- URGING INDONESIA TO DO MORE REF: A. STATE 74362 ¶B. JAKARTA 2266 Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: We have strongly encouraged the GOI to consider what it can do to assist Afghanistan's political development. We urged, for example, that the GOI think creatively and consider using the Indonesian-founded Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) as a venue to help build up the capacity of the Afghan government. Our GOI contacts promised to consider our request to engage Afghanistan via the BDF. Additionally, poloff spoke with NGO contacts and discussed the possible role of Indonesian civil society in the process of Afghan capacity building. END SUMMARY. URGING INDONESIA TO DO MORE ¶2. (C) Per reftel instructions, we have encouraged the GOI to move forward with assistance to Afghanistan beyond the August presidential election. Poloff underlined that Indonesia--the third-largest democracy in the world--could assist Afghanistan's political development in many constructive, creative ways. The U.S. and other donors wanted to work with the GOI to locate ways that Afghan requirements could be met in way that helped build stability and sustainable democratic government in Afghanistan. POSSIBILITY OF USING THE BDF ¶3. (C) Poloff specifically urged GOI contacts to consider using the BDF as a venue to help build capacity for the Afghan government. Indonesia recently hosted the inaugural meeting of the Bali Democracy Forum, which was attended by 32 Asian countries with the U.S. present as an observer. The Indonesian Foreign Minister's statement at the BDF opening ceremony included a number of specific regional priorities, including work on: electoral processes, political party capacity building, rule of law, legislative processes, good governance, and, interfaith dialogue. The mission of the BDF, he said, was to raise Indonesia's regional and international profile while leveraging democracy in the region. ¶4. (C) Given this, the BDF would seem to be a logical venue to try to provide resources on a regional level to international efforts to strengthen and secure Afghanistan. Poloff underscored that this would be a great opportunity for Indonesia to use its regional leadership role to promote security and stability in Asia. GOI contacts said they would actively consider this. LEVERAGING CIVIL SOCIETY ¶5. (C) Mission also pressed the idea of Indonesian civil society playing a role. Poloff spoke to Dr. Lily Munir, a well-known Muslim scholar and advocate for the rights of women and their role in religion. In 2004, Munir spent six months in Afghanistan as a member of an eleven-person advisory council (JEMB) which worked alongside the United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) regarding the Afghan elections. In this capacity, her team was entrusted to recruit civic education and registration staff, advise the government on the preparation and issuance of an electoral law, participate in capacity building programs, and more generally prepare for the general election. ¶6. (C) Munir said she would welcome the opportunity to use her experience in Afghanistan to help seek a role for Indonesian civil society in the process of strengthening Afghan civil society, either through the BDF or independently. She said she would work with other Indonesian and Southeast Asian NGOs and see what could be arranged in terms of international assistance. Mission is also raising the subject of ways to assist Afghanistan with other civil society organizations. HUME