VZCZCXRO7656
OO RUEHBC RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHDT RUEHGI RUEHHM RUEHJS
RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHPW RUEHROV
DE RUEHJA #0054 0091013
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 091013Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7599
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS PRIORITY
RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 4631
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 1857
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 1396
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON 2224
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RHHJJPI/USPACOM HONOLULU HI

UNCLAS JAKARTA 000054 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/PD, R, ECA, IIP 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV KISL KPAO ID
SUBJECT: ISLAMIC PARTY VALUES PUBLIC DIPLOMACY PROGRAMS 
 
¶1. (U) This message is Sensitive But Unclassified -- please 
handle accordingly. 
 
¶3. (SBU)  SUMMARY: Leaders of Indonesia's largest Islamic 
party (PKS) told the Ambassador that separatism, climate 
change and transnational crime were the greatest threats to 
Indonesia's security.  PKS officials said they appreciated 
USG public diplomacy programs, especially exchanges.  END 
SUMMARY 
 
¶4. (SBU) Ambassador Hume paid a January 8 introductory call 
on Tifatul Sembiring, President of the Prosperous Justice 
Party (PKS), Indonesia's largest Islamic political party. 
Taufik Ramlan Wijaya, head of the PKS International Relations 
Division, and Zulkieflimansyah (one name only), a PKS member 
of the National Assembly (DPR) also participated.  PKS burst 
onto the national political scene in the 2004 elections, in 
which it captured more than seven percent of the popular vote 
after highlighting its anti-corruption credentials and 
downplaying its commitment to sharia law.  Since 2004, the 
party has continued to build its infrastructure by expanding 
its community outreach, especially to university students. 
The party has had strong showings in local elections, 
including this summer's gubernatorial race in Jakarta, but 
nation-wide polling shows that PKS' support has dropped to 5% 
since 2004.  PKS, which is an offshoot of the Egyptian Muslim 
Brotherhood,  backed SBY in the second round of the 2004 
presidential race, has three ministers in the cabinet 
(agriculture, housing, and youth and sports). 
 
¶5. (SBU) PKS PRIORITIES:  Tifatul explained that the PKS had 
identified the key top threats to Indonesia's security 
regional separatism; climate change; and transnational crime 
(including terrorism, trafficking in persons and money 
laundering).  The Ambassador said this was a good set of 
priorities and urged PKS to work with other elements of 
President Yudhoyono's ruling coalition to counter these 
problems. 
 
¶6. (SBU) PUBLIC DIPLOMACY PAYS OFF:  Tifatul thanked the 
Ambassador for USG public diplomacy programs, which had 
greatly benefited PKS officials.  Tifatul noted he had 
visited the U.S. in 2006 through the International Visitor 
Program and said the experience had given him a greater 
understanding of U.S. politics, culture, and society.  PKS 
legislator Zulkieflimansyah also noted the value of 
USG-sponsored programs in making available to Indonesian 
audiences translations of books about the United States.  USG 
PD programs also helped PKS officials better understand 
America's democratic process, a lesson they hoped to put into 
practice in their own political campaigning.  The 
interlocutors repeatedly stressed their appreciation for 
these opportunities to understand the U.S. better and urged 
that USG continue to include PKS candidates in the exchange 
programs. 
 
¶7. (SBU) The Ambassador underscored the USG's commitment to 
public diplomacy and to engagement with PKS.  He noted that 
he would host an event for Super Tuesday to engage 
Indonesians on the U.S. elections and would invite Indonesian 
political parties to attend.  He also explained that he was 
working to bring a National Basketball Association (NBA) 
exhibition to Indonesia.  The PKS interlocutors welcomed the 
program and said sports offered an excellent way to build 
understanding across cultures.  (Note: the Minister of Youth 
and Sports in the Yudhoyono administration is a PKS member.) 
 
¶8. (SBU) DECENTRALIZATION AND DEMOCRACY:  Parliamentarian 
Zulkieflimansyah reiterated PKS's support for Indonesia's 
process of decentralization, calling it a critical factor 
shaping the country's democratic transformation.  Outsiders, 
particularly multinational companies, frequently did not 
understand Indonesia's decentralization, Zulkieflimansyah 
said.  It was important that companies establish good 
relationships with local politicians in order to cope with 
Indonesia's increasingly decentralized democracy. 
 
HUME