In one of the harshest criticisms ever in decades, Indonesia did not mince words in lambasting the failure of the United Nations to promote peace, justice and harmony across nations on Earth. Its true nature of being just a geopolitical instrument aimed at strengthening the colonialist ideals of the West did not escape the Indonesian president’s mind.
The executive statements coming from the Asian-African Conference are signals that as far as Asia and Africa are concern, it’s not business as usual with the West and Israel anymore. Although, the West stooge Abe is double-talking about where Japan truly stands, his country’s cooperative action with China and Korea is promising.
It is also very interesting to consider that: According to Neil Keenan, during his group’s interview with Pete Santilli, the process of opening the Global Collateral Accounts for worldwide development will be done within the next 3 to 6 months.
Jokowi Calls for Reform of UN at Asian-African Conference
By JG & Reuters on 02:32 pm Apr 22, 2015
Jakarta. President Joko Widodo has criticized the United Nations and the world’s financial institutions for leading an imbalance of economic and political power.
Joko’s speech in Jakarta opened a meeting of Asian and African nations to mark the 60th anniversary of a conference that was seen as a united stand by the developing world against colonialism and led to the Cold War era’s non-aligned movement.
The Indonesian president said that 60 years on, many countries in the two continents have gotten rid of their colonial masters and become independent nations.
“However our fight is far from over. A new world order based on justice, equality and prosperity is still out of reach,” the president said, referring to the aims of the inaugural 1955 Bali Conference.
Joko said 20 percent of countries lived in a world of abundance while the rest, especially countries in Asia and Africa, struggled to cross the poverty line.
“We, Asian and African countries, demand that the United Nations reform to function optimally as the world body that puts justice for all nations first,” Joko said. “For me, the global imbalance is getting more and more suffocating.”
Joko said the new global order should also be opened to emerging economic powers and leave the “obsolete ideas” of post-World War II Bretton Woods institutions in the past.
“There is a shifting world reality … Those who say the global economic problems shall only be solved through the World Bank, the IMF and the ADB, these are obsolete ideas,” Joko said. “There needs to be change. It’s imperative that we build a new international economic order that is open to new emerging economic powers.”
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are at the center of the Bretton Woods global financial order created by the United States and Europe.
Joko made no mention of the China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which is seen as a threat to the Western-dominated World Bank and Asian Development Bank, but Indonesia is one of nearly 60 countries that have offered to be founding members of the AIIB.
The United States and Japan have not thrown their support behind the bank, which is seen as a threat to US efforts to extend its influence in the Asia-Pacific region and balance China’s growing financial clout.
Indonesia invited heads of state and government from 109 Asian and African countries, but there have been dozens of no-shows and officials said only 34 leaders turned up.
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, speaking at the conference, said countries in Asia and Africa “should no longer be consigned to the role of exporters of primary goods and importers of finished goods.”
The long-serving ruler called it a “role that has historically been assigned to us by the colonial powers and starting from the days of colonialism.”
The world order has changed dramatically since nearly 30 heads of state gathered in 1955 to discuss security and economic development away from global powers embroiled in the Cold War.
Many of those countries, such as China, India and Indonesia, are now themselves at top tables like the Group of 20 and wield significant economic power.
Joko said the group was meeting again in a changed world but still needed to stand together against the domination of an unspecified “certain group of countries” to avoid unfairness and global imbalances.
Abe & Xi
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the summit on Wednesday, a Japanese government official said, the latest sign of a thaw in relations between the Asian rivals.
However, speaking at the summit ahead of the expected meeting, Abe warned powerful nations against imposing on the weak, an implicit reference to China. He also made an allusion to Tokyo’s remorse in the past over World War II, but stopped short of issuing a fresh apology.
Abe’s comments made it an awkward diplomatic backdrop for the expected meeting with Xi. But a Japanese official said ahead of Abe’s address that the two leaders would meet later in the day. China’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tensions between Asia’s two biggest economies have flared in recent years due to feuds over wartime history as well as territorial rows and regional rivalry.
Memories of Japan’s past military aggression run deep in China, and Beijing has repeatedly urged Japan to face up to history. But the meeting on Wednesday between the two leaders was expected to promote a cautious rapprochement that began when Abe and Xi met at a summit in Beijing late last year.
“We should never allow to go unchecked the use of force by the mightier to twist the weaker around,” Abe said at the summit in Jakarta. “The wisdom of our forefathers in Bandung was that the rule of law should protect the dignity of sovereign nations, be they large or small,” Abe said, speaking after Xi had addressed the conference.
China is locked in territorial rows with several smaller countries in the South China Sea, while Japan has a separate feud over islets in the East China Sea.
Abe said in his Jakarta speech that Japan had, “with feelings of deep remorse over the past war,” pledged to adhere to principles affirmed at the first Bandung Conference, including refraining from the use of force and settling international disputes by peaceful means.
As the Jakarta conference got underway, President Joko was flanked by Xi and Abe for a group leaders’ photo. The two remained on either side of Joko when they sat and watched an Indonesian traditional dance troupe perform.
JG & Reuters
Further coverage:
Editorial
Jokowi Pleased With Asian-African Conference Results
By Basten Gokkon on 11:27 pm Apr 23, 2015
At least 90 countries from the two continents have worked together to formulate three important documents: the Bandung Message; the Declaration on Reinvigorating the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership; and the Declaration on Palestine.
On Thursday, Joko officially authorized the documents as the outcome of the 60th commemoration of the high-level conference.
“I believe that the concepts that have been produced will reflect the Bandung Spirit and the interests of every country,” he said.
“I, therefore, would like to express my appreciation for the enthusiasm and the commitment of your majesties and excellencies, and of all parties involved in the formulation of the outcome documents and in the convening of this summit,” Joko said before the delegates at the Jakarta Convention Center.
He urged the world to listen to the voices and decisions made during the conference, saying the summit was one of the largest intergovernmental forums outside the framework of the United Nations, in which Asian and African countries, as well as a number of international observers, take part.
“The voices in the summit represent the voices of Asia and Africa,” Joko said.
He added that participating countries had also agreed to reinvigorate the core ideas of the South-South movement, namely prosperity, solidarity and stability of Asian and African nations.
“We have agreed to establish a network of peace-keeping centers in the two regions, to facilitate capacity-building cooperation,” Joko said.
The conference condemned acts of extremism and terrorism in the name of religion and resolved to promote dialogue between cultures and faiths, he said. The summit also agreed to foster trade and investment as the engine of growth.
“In this regard, we will pursue a fair, multilateral trading system, which is pro-growth and inclusive; which would contribute to growth, investment and job opportunities; and which promotes sustainable development,” Joko said.
He highlighted the Asian and African countries’ recognition of the centrality of the maritime sector as well as the strategic importance of the Indian Ocean in bridging the economic development of the two continents.
“In this regard, maritime cooperation will become one of the pillars of the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership,” the president said.
“I will work hard with all of you to ensure the materialization of the strategic partnership. I will also strive, with your support, for the prosperity, equality and stability of all Asian and African countries,” he said, ending his remarks.
Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe, co-chair of the day’s forum, said the three documents captured the ideas and visions of where Asian and African nations would lead in the future through the Bandung Spirit.
“This was a very successful meeting … There is no doubt therefore that this summit will be historic,” he said.
Joko also announced several other outcomes from the conference.
“I’m very glad to announce that we’ve established April 24 as Asia-Africa Day; reinforced Bandung as the city of Asian-African solidarity; and more importantly, the opening of the Asia Africa Center in Indonesia,” Joko told reporters.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno L.P. Marsudi said her office, which organized the conference, had not yet decided where the center would be located.
She said the countries would have another meeting to plan the venture.
“What we have prepared are the programs that will be run under the Asia Africa Center and also the modalities,” Retno said.
The United States, which attended the conference as an observer, praised Indonesia, saying it had long been a champion for peace and cooperation on the international stage.
“Very notably, however, over the past 17 years Indonesia also has become a model of democratic transformation, religious pluralism and tolerance, and economic development,” said Robert O. Blake, Jr., the US ambassador to Indonesia, who led his country’s delegation at the conference.
“It is now home to the world’s largest democracy after India and the United States,” he added.
He said that as a fellow democracy, the United States shared Indonesia’s respect for fundamental human rights — the first of 10 principles extolled by the original Bandung Conference in 1955.
“It is our hope that the countries attending this conference in 2015 will leave Bandung inspired by Indonesia’s commitment to a political system based on the consent of the governed, rule of law, and respect for human rights,” Blake said. “Countries whose policies respect and reflect these rights are far more likely to be more peaceful and more prosperous.”
The United States, the ambassador said, was fully committed to partnering with countries in Asia and Africa to advance cooperation and address shared challenges together.
The United States has been increasingly involved in Asia and the Pacific.
US President Barack Obama’s strategic decision to rebalance US efforts and resources toward the Asia-Pacific region is an example of how vital the region is to Washington’s interests.
Many, however, see the renewed US engagement in Asia as an attempt to counterbalance China’s growing clout in the region.
“Our expanding engagement with Asia is about sustaining progress and stability in a region relatively free of conflict — a region where democracy increasingly has taken hold,” Blake said.
“Our rebalance provides for a win-win scenario in which every country in the region, including China, contributes to the continuation of decades of peace and stability.”
He added that beyond Bandung, challenges remained, including combating climate change, stopping the spread of infectious diseases, strengthening good governance, and countering violent ideologies and terrorism.
“The United States looks forward to cooperating with Indonesia and other countries represented at this conference to overcome these challenges,” Blake said.
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I have never heard so much Bullshit come out of the American Ambassador Robert O Blake Jr. His speech is just crap and the only reason the US is interested in the Asian region is so they can have a foot-hold in their efforts to undermine China and be in a position to be able to go to war with China and Russia in the near future. It is what the use of Darwin in Australia as a staging base is all about, so beware their speech is not worth the paper it is written on!!.
On another note I am impressed with the way the conference has progressed with some very positive results. However we all need to watch our back door.
How is the HAARPing in Australia, John?
It’s good to have you back again.