Southeast Asian Leaders Offer Condolences to Indonesia on Suharto's Death

Jan 27, 08:55 AM

Manila, Jan. 27 Kyodo - Southeast Asian leaders sent condolences and remembrances Sunday to the family of former Indonesian President Suharto, who died earlier in the day at 86.

In Manila, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was quoted as saying in a statement from Dubai, "The government of the Philippines and the Filipino people join me in offering deepest sympathies and condolences on the demise of former President Suharto."

Arroyo hailed Suharto for his role in forging the peace pact between the Philippine government and the Muslim secessionist Moro National Liberation Front in 1996.

"The Philippines is grateful to former President Suharto for his commitment to achieving just and lasting peace in Mindanao," she said, referring to the southern Philippine region where the majority of Muslim Filipinos reside.

"Generations of Filipinos and Southeast Asians will remember President Suharto for his key role in regional community building and for his contributions to consolidating the gains of peace- building in Mindanao," she said.

As one of the founding fathers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Suharto "was among those who had the pioneering vision of establishing a more peaceful, progressive and prosperous Southeast Asian region founded on respect and understanding."

"For these enduring legacies, President Suharto will never be forgotten," Arroyo added.

In Singapore, it has been decided Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will go to Indonesia on Sunday evening to pay his last respects to Suharto, a Singapore Foreign Ministry spokesman said.

Deputy Prime Minister S. Jayakumar will represent Singapore at a funeral in Solo [Surakarta] on Monday.

Lee's father, former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew who ruled Singapore for 30 years until 1990, was an old friend of Suharto and visited him in hospital in Jakarta on Jan. 13.

The Foreign Ministry also expressed condolences.

"We are saddened by the news of the passing of former Indonesian President Suharto," the ministry spokesman said.

"Singapore would like to convey our deepest sympathies to the Indonesian people for their profound loss."

The elder Lee gave his tribute to Suharto during his recent trip to Jakarta to see Suharto.

Lee told reporters, "It is sad to see a very old friend, with whom I worked closely over the last 30 years, not really getting the honours that he deserves."

He said Suharto deserves credit for his contribution to Indonesia.

"He gave Indonesia progress and development. He educated the population. He built roads and infrastructure," Lee said.

Comparing Indonesia with Myanmar, Lee said that unlike Myanmar's military leadership, Suharto, who was also a general, gave Indonesia a strong economic base.

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi honoured Suharto as one who brought the two neighbours closer.

"We value highly the role played by Pak Harto in enhancing bilateral relations. The good relations have yielded immense benefits to both countries. We pray to Allah to bless Pak Harto's soul," the official news agency Bernama quoted him as telling reporters.

Pak Harto was a term of endearment for the strongman.

Suharto was instrumental in reestablishing ties with Malaysia after the two neighbours were locked in bitter skirmishes during the time of Indonesia's first President Sukarno over territorial issues.

Sukarno launched what was known as "konfrontasi" or confrontation between 1962 and 1966 against then Federation of Malaya over the British move to incorporate its colonies - Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei in Borneo into what would later be called Malaysia following the British withdrawal from Southeast Asia.

When Suharto toppled Sukarno in 1965, he put an end to the conflict and signed a peace accord with Malaysia in August 1966.

(Reporting from Dario Agnote in Manila, Siti Rahil in Singapore and Vivian Ho in Kuala Lumpur)

Originally published by Kyodo News Service, Tokyo, in English 1221 27 Jan 08.

(c) 2008 BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved. Southeast Asian Leaders Offer Condolences to Indonesia on Suharto's Death
Back to Current Headlines