BURMA -- INDONESIA CONSIDERS STRONGER ACTION

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 001419 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP NSC FOR D.WALTON E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/27/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV ID BM SUBJECT: BURMA -- INDONESIA CONSIDERS STRONGER ACTION Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: President Yudhoyono is considering stronger Indonesian action in response to the Burmese regime's recent extension of Aung San Suu Kyi's house arrest. As he has done in the past, Yudhoyono may write to Burmese leader Than Shwe or dispatch a special envoy to urge reforms. Separately, the ASEAN Secretariat is quietly pressing Indonesia to appoint an envoy. Yudhoyono has long believed that Indonesia, with its own history of democratic transformation from a military-dominated autocracy, could play an important role in promoting change in Burma. END SUMMARY. SBY SAID TO BE "OUTRAGED" ¶2. (C) The recent decision to sentence Aung San Suu Kyi to an additional eighteen months of house arrest has "outraged" President Yudhoyono (SBY),according to Astari Daenuwy, an international affairs adviser at the Presidential Palace. Daenuwy told Pol/C on August 26 that Yudhoyono believed the Burmese action had embarrassed ASEAN in front of the entire world. As a result, she said, SBY was looking for ways that Indonesia could play a stronger role pressing for reform in Burma. Yudhoyono had previously written to Burmese leader Than Shwe to urge reforms and had sent a special envoy to make the case personally to Burmese officials. While he could return to these options, Yudhoyono is reportedly considering other possibilities as well, Daenuwy remarked. ASEAN OFFICIALS ENCOURAGE INDONESIAN ENVOY ¶3. (C) In the meantime, ASEAN officials are quietly encouraging Indonesia to play a more assertive role on Burma. This, according to William Sabandar, the Secretary General's Special Envoy for Post-Nargis Recovery. Sabandar--an Indonesian national--told poloff on the margins of a briefing at the ASEAN Secretariat (see septel) that he had urged senior officials in President Yudhoyono's office to appoint an Indonesian special envoy to Burma. The proposed envoy would focus first on humanitarian issues and subsequently address more sensitive matters such as military reform. ¶4. (C) Sabandar said General (ret'd) Agus Widjoyo is the leading candidate for the position. Widjoyo, a long-time advocate for military reform in Indonesia, has previously traveled to Burma on Yudhoyono's behalf to encourage the regime to undertake reforms. He is personally close to the president and was a key figure in the Indonesia-Timor Leste Commission on Truth and Friendship. Sabandar cautioned, however, that from what he understood SBY had not yet decided whether he would appoint an envoy. NOW MAY BE THE TIME ¶5. (C) Now may be a good time for Indonesia to take stronger action on Burma. Yudhoyono, a former general who has now twice been elected president of Indonesia, believes his country has a special role to play promoting democracy in Burma. He believes that Indonesia's transition from a military-dominated authoritarian government to a democracy--without widespread reprisals against the military--could serve as a model for Burma. Indonesia's success addressing ethnic separatist conflicts in regions like Aceh could also help show Burma how to tackle similar problems. Reelected to the presidency with a clear mandate in July, Yudhoyono--based on our soundings--seems to be looking for an opportunity for Indonesia to show leadership on this high-profile international and regional issue. HUME