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Indonesia tests ties with
'arrogant' neighbor
by Kalinga
Seneviratne
JAKARTA - From Medan to
Jakarta, Yogakarta, Surabaya, Solo and Batam, all
across this vast archipelago Indonesian
konfrontasi, or confrontation volunteer
militias, are undergoing martial-arts training to
attack what they call "arrogant Malaysia".
The friendship between the two Southeast
Asian Muslim neighbors has been strained in recent
weeks over a disputed island off Indonesia's
Kalimantan province.
Both Malaysia and
Indonesia are claiming ownership of the Ambalat
island off northern Kalimantan and its seabed,
which is believed to possess large quantities of
petroleum and gas deposits. The dispute over the
island flared up on February 16 when Malaysian
state-owned oil company Petronas granted an oil
exploration concession to the giant British-Dutch
multinational Shell petroleum company.
Since then, both countries have disputed
each other's claim to the area and sent gunboats
to protect their interests. Indonesia's Department
of Transportation has also sent workers to build a
lighthouse on Unarang Reef just off the island.
Jakarta claims the Malaysian navy arrested and
assaulted these workers before releasing them.
While the Malaysian media has been mute on
the issue, here in Indonesia the media has drummed
up nationalist sentiments over the issue, which
has been taken up by political and youth groups
raising the specter of the Sukarno era "Smash
Malaysia" campaign of 1963.
While young
people across the country have been enlisted as
konfrontasi volunteers, some demonstrators
have burned the Malaysian flag. Yet, leaders of
both countries have appealed for refrain and vowed
to settle the dispute by peaceful means.
During a visit to Jakarta last week to
meet his Indonesian counterpart to discuss the
contentious issue, Malaysia's amicable foreign
minister, Syed Hamid Albar, gave a series of media
interviews to calm the waters and appealed to the
Indonesian media to tone down its anti-Malaysian
rhetoric.
When asked by the popular Tempo
magazine whether Malaysia was ready for war, Albar
asked "what war?" He went on to assure Indonesia
that war has never been an option considered by
Malaysia.
"Those who talk about war are
the Indonesian media," he said. "Indonesian
television talks about attacking Malaysia. I think
they should tone it down."
Confrontation
between two countries that share a common
religion, language and cultural traditions may
sound somewhat out of place in the modern world.
But, many analysts here argue that the latest
confrontation is much more than just a dispute
over territory.
They point out that this
comes hard on the heels of Malaysia's high-handed
arrest and deportation of thousands of illegal
Indonesian workers; while on the other hand, the
Indonesian media has whipped up the Ambalat issue
immediately after a controversial fuel-price hike
by the government of newly elected President
Susilo Bamabang Yudhoyono.
"The Ambalat
case has at least demonstrated how the spirit of
nationalism has 'pushed back' waves of protests
against the increase in fuel prices," observed
political science lecturer Israr Iskandar of
Andalas University in Padang.
Writing in
the Jakarta Post this week, he warned that while
the Ambalat case has indicated that nationalism is
still strong in Indonesia, it runs the danger of
burying beneath it the real people's issues,
especially cost of living.
But media
analyst Wahyutama of the Jakarta-based media
watchdog Habibie Center argues that the treatment
of Indonesian migrant workers in Malaysia may well
be the trigger for the current nationalist
sentiments here.
On March 1, Malaysia
began rounding up and arresting undocumented
workers - most of whom are Indonesians - following
the end of a four-month amnesty. Those arrested
could face heavy fines, jail sentences and
whipping.
"We cannot just simplify
Indonesia's reaction to Malaysia as a result of
media exposure to the Ambalat issue. The reaction
is the accumulated emotions of the Indonesian
people toward Malaysia-Indonesia relations,
especially regarding Indonesian workers,"
Wahyutama told Inter Press Service in an
interview. "I believe the emotions are addressed
to the Malaysian government and not to the people.
"There is a general feeling among
Indonesian people of being humiliated and
dishonored by Malaysia," Wahyutama noted. "The
Ambalat conflict happened in a sequence with the
sweep of Indonesian illegal workers from
Malaysia," he added.
"This policy is
viewed by Indonesian people with disgust. It shows
Malaysia has no respect for the Indonesian people
- especially the cruel punishment like whipping
meted out by the Malaysian government to
Indonesians."
Malaysia's decision to award
a concession for oil exploitation and management
in the Ambalat area to Shell indicated that Kuala
Lumpur is sure the island is part of its
territory. Indonesia, however, is also confident
that the area is in its maritime territory.
Jakarta says its claim to the area is supported by
historical facts that Ambalat previously was part
of the Bulungan Sultanate that since Indonesia's
independence in 1945 has been incorporated into
the Indonesian archipelago.
The latest
clash between the two neighbors is related to the
dispute over the Sipadan and Ligitan islands in
the same Sulawesi Sea - a dispute that was settled
in Malaysia's favor by the International Court of
Justice in 2002. Malaysia's claim over Ambalat and
the Unarang Reef is based on the 2002 judgement.
But because there is an overlapping
territory, Indonesia has used the rules of the
Convention of Law of the Sea to lay claim to
portions of the island, situated off the land
border between East Kalimantan and Malaysia's
state of Sabah.
Analysts believe that
Indonesia will not go into international
arbitration on this issue because the 2002 case
was very costly, especially the pay for foreign
lawyers. Malaysia too is not in a mood for a legal
battle, something Foreign Minister Albar indicated
during his visit here last week.
The two
countries are due to meet again next week to
hammer out a possible joint oil exploration deal
in a bid to diffuse tensions.
(Inter Press
Service) |
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