Help from the U.S. poses quandary for many Indonesians
By Raymond Bonner The New York Times
Friday, January 7, 2005
JAKARTA In the country with the world's largest population of Muslims, where T-shirts with images of Osama bin Laden are more likely to be spotted than ones with George W. Bush, the massive outpouring of assistance from the United States in response to the tsunami devastation is producing something of a political upheaval: America is being praised, even by some of its harshest critics, while Arab countries are being questioned.
"I am getting messages from friends, saying, 'Why have the Muslim countries been so slow and stingy?"' said Goenawan Mohamad, who is a veteran editor, writer, poet and one of Indonesia's most prominent intellectuals.
Indonesians are comparing the small amounts that have been offered by Arab countries with the hundreds of millions from the United States, Australia, Europe, Japan and China, said Mohamad, who along with the overwhelming majority of Indonesians has protested the American invasion of Iraq.
A few days ago, a letter in Koran Tempo, a major Indonesian newspaper, asked why Jemaah Islamiyah, the radical Islamic organization here, was not doing anything to help in Aceh Province, which bore the brunt of the tsunami on Dec. 26. The United States has accused Jemaah Islamiyah of being a terrorist organization, and its spiritual leader, Abu Bakar Bashir, is on trial in connection with several terrorist attacks. Many Indonesians consider it to be a legitimate organization, with the political goal of an Islamic state.
Indonesians are not basically anti-American, Mohamad said. But most of them are strongly opposed to American policies in the Middle East, starting with what is seen here as America's unwavering support for Israel. After the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Indonesians generally expressed solidarity with the United States, but the good will evaporated quickly.
Washington's campaign against terrorism has been widely interpreted by Indonesians as a war on Islam, and the various public diplomacy efforts launched by the Bush administration to counter that have failed miserably.
Since the United States invaded Iraq, its image here has plummeted to historic lows. Only some 15 percent of Indonesians now have a favorable view of the United States, down from around 65 percent a few years ago.
Whether the good will generated by the relief assistance will be enough to overcome America's Iraq policy is a good question, Mohamad said.
"The criticism will remain, but the sting will be less," he said.
It has helped that President George W. Bush brought out his father and former President Bill Clinton to raise money for the relief effort, Mohamad said.
"It deflects attention from Bush Jr., who is not the most popular person in the world." Mohamad added.
Rachmat Witolear, who has been a leader of one of the country's largest political parties, Golkar, a former ambassador and is now the environment minister, agreed that the relief assistance would improve America's standing here. But how much will depend on how the president acts, he said.
"It's a good initiative," Witolear said, "But still he has to be careful because the prevailing view of him being arrogant is still there."
The views about the U.S. assistance are not all positive. Some Indonesians are still upset over the fact that the Bush administration was slow to respond and at first offered $15 million in relief aid.
Nasrul Haq, chairman of the student body at Padjajaran University in Bandung, said it was only after being criticized by the United Nations, and after other countries had offered more money, that the United States increased its aid to $350 million.
"It looks like they are concerned about their ego, that the United States as a superpower doesn't want anyone to beat them," he said in an interview.
Gari Primanada, who heads the student body at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta, said there was some skepticism about America's motives.
"Maybe they want the oil in North Sumatra," he said.
Still, as Mohamad said, "on the whole, the feeling is good - I hope it will last."
Copyright © 2005 The International Herald Tribune / www.iht.com
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