Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-06-05-Speech-4-211"
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"en.20030605.7.4-211"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, peace and the rule of law in Indonesia have taken a major step backwards, with the breakdown of the ceasefire and renewed hostilities in the province of Aceh on the one hand and with the fresh outbreak of tensions in Irian Jaya, also known as West Papua, on the other.
Indonesia is one of the world’s largest countries, and has the unique feature of suffering not only from the problems arising from its geography and history and, in particular, from the process of decolonisation – to which Mr Meijer referred, and in which lies the root of the problems of the former sultanate of Aceh – but also from the problems posed by Indonesia’s brutal repression and dictatorship and by its expansionist approach, which led to the annexation of Irian Jaya and the military takeover of East Timor.
These two latter facts help us to understand the gravity and complexity of the situation facing that country today. The decolonisation of East Timor, which followed the fall of the Suharto dictatorship, represented an historic step in reversing both this internal expansionist intent, which was typical of Indonesia, and the attitude of the western world which had, by commission and by omission, supported the takeover of this small South-East Asian nation, which had only recently come into being.
As we know, this was not a peaceful action and could only succeed because external military force was used, after the United Nations proved unable to deal with Indonesia’s armed response on its own. Having said this, and whilst acknowledging that we should not always declare ourselves against any armed action, all the evidence suggests, as indicated in our joint resolution, that we must do everything possible to bring this armed conflict to an end and to ensure that dialogue reopens between the Indonesian Government and the separatist movements in Aceh, as well as the representatives of Irian Jaya.
Over and above accepting responsibility for all measures necessary to re-establishing the ceasefire in Aceh and dialogue in Irian Jaya, we must also establish an external policy for Indonesia, based on respect for human rights, for minorities and for inter-ethnic and inter-religious dialogue. These principles must furthermore take precedence over geopolitical or economic considerations, which are always poor counsellors in these situations and which have provided such poor results in the past. These principles must also take precedence over determinist considerations such as territorial integrity or the right to self-determination, which are sometimes difficult to define at the outset."@en1
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