Indonesia Returns to the International Stage: Good News for the United States
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Leadership Aspirations, Nationalism and Anti-Imperialism
Most Indonesians believe that their country's size, strategic location, and revolutionary history entitle it to a leadership role in global affairs. This belief is enshrined in the bebas dan aktif, or free and active doctrine, that was promulgated by Prime Minister Mohammad Hatta in 1948 and remains the guiding principle of Indonesian foreign policy.1
Developmental Foreign Policy
General Suharto directed a wholesale reorientation of Indonesian domestic politics that produced equally dramatic shifts in it foreign policy. Naming itself the “New Order,” Suharto's regime defined itself in contradistinction to the old: political order would replace instability; conservative forces would replace left-wing ones; and economic autarky would be replaced by integration into the global capitalist economy. Lacking Sukarno's nationalist credentials, Suharto sought to legitimize his
Indonesia's Fall and Rise
The heights reached in the mid-1990s made the fall much harder. Indonesians were shocked by the speed with which outsiders were to “rebrand” Indonesia during the Asian financial crisis and the tumultuous events that followed. As the economy contracted 13.8 percent during 1998—the largest single year contraction of any country since the Great Depression—Indonesia morphed from an economic miracle into a hotbed of crony capitalism.12
The Return to Activism
“We are the fourth most populous nation in the world. We are home to the world's largest Muslim population. We are the world's third largest democracy. We are also a country where democracy, Islam and modernity go hand in hand,” President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono declared in his first major foreign policy speech in May 2005. “And our heart is always with the developing world, to which we belong. These are the things that define who we are and what we do in the community of nations.”18
Good Bilateral Relations
The United States has welcomed Indonesia's return, both for the example it sets as a moderate, Muslim democracy and for its stand on international issues. U.S.-Indonesian relations today are the best they have been in years. Cooperation on counterterrorism is quietly effective, military relations have been resumed, and the two are working together on global issues such as maritime security in Southeast Asia, Iran, Burma and Middle East conflicts.
The relationship is not completely free of
American Ignorance of Indonesia
Indonesia is often called the most important country about which Americans know nothing. Yet, Indonesia is home to the world's largest community of Muslims. Eighty-eight percent of its 238 million people profess the Islamic faith, which means that Indonesia has more adherents to Islam than in all the Arab states combined.22 But it is not an Islamic state. During constitutional revisions in 2004, an effort by Islamic parties to
Anti-Americanism in Indonesia
Indonesians know more about the United States than vice versa but do not like what they see. According to the Pew Global Attitudes Project, 67 percent of Indonesians held negative views of the United States during President Bush's November 2006 visit. This is a dramatic drop from 2002, when 61 percent of Indonesians viewed the United States favorably. In the wake of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, Indonesians holding positive views of the United States plunged to 15 percent.28
The Fallacy of the Simplistic Democratic Cooperation Thesis
Much of the American commentary regarding Indonesia suggests that a common commitment to democracy will translate into common interests in foreign affairs. According to this thesis, democratization not only makes countries less likely to fight one another, but also fosters shared values that promote cooperation. Supporters of this thesis point to Indonesia's new pressure on Burma to undertake democratic reforms. On many other issues, however, it is unlikely to hold. Democratization has opened
A Bridge Too Far?
Yudhoyono has stated that he wants to be “a peacemaker, confidence-builder, problem-solver, bridge-builder.”36 Indonesia has a long history of mediation. It served on the International Control Commission during the Vietnam War and was ASEAN's lead mediator on the Cambodian issue. Today, Indonesia envisions itself as a bridge between the West and the Muslim world. Yudhoyono believes that
Handle with Care
Indonesia is back, and that is good news for the United States. Its status as a Muslim democracy, its traditional role as a mediator and its good working relations with the United States make it a potentially important international partner on a wide range of issues.
Relations with Indonesia need to be handled with care. The almost xenophobic nationalism that appears when Indonesia feels threatened or unjustly treated is never far from the surface. During the tsunami relief effort, for example,
Ann Marie Murphy is an Assistant Professor at the Whitehead School of Diplomacy & International Relations, Seton Hall University, an adjunct research fellow at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University, and an Associate Fellow of the Asia Society.
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Ann Marie Murphy is an Assistant Professor at the Whitehead School of Diplomacy & International Relations, Seton Hall University, an adjunct research fellow at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University, and an Associate Fellow of the Asia Society.