VZCZCXRO5111
OO RUEHDT RUEHPB
DE RUEHJA #1360/01 2301100
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 181100Z AUG 09
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3089
INFO RUCNARF/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001360 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP 
NSC FOR J. BADER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON KDEM ID
SUBJECT: YUDHOYONO SHARES HIS VISION FOR INDONESIA IN 
NATIONAL DAY SPEECH 
 
REF: JAKARTA 1352 AND PREVIOUS 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:   President Yudhoyono's August 14 National 
Day Address showed a confident leader on the cusp of his 
second and final term of office who sees his nation at the 
launching point for greater things.  The broad vision for 
Indonesia Yudhoyono laid out corresponds in many ways to the 
contents of the Comprehensive Partnership and may offer 
opportunities for an ambitious agenda if President Obama 
visits in the fall.  Yudhoyono sketched out a nationalist 
economic policy that downplayed the role of exports for 
economic growth.  However, he encouraged Indonesia to produce 
the technology and entrepreneurs necessary for the country to 
compete and benefit from the global economy.  Yudhoyono also 
reinforced his commitment to fight terrorism.  END SUMMARY. 
 
YUDHOYONO'S VISION: A SELF-RELIANT BUT COMPETITIVE DEMOCRACY 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  In his August 14 National Day speech, with his 
re-election victory finally confirmed, President Yudhoyono 
laid out his vision of where Indonesia should be in the year 
¶2025.  Indicating that he views the current juncture as a 
turning point for Indonesia, Yudhoyono began by extolling 
Indonesia's democratic progress since independence, and in 
particular during the decade of "reformasi" following the 
fall of Suharto.  He noted that few observers in 1998 would 
have predicted that Indonesia would become the stable, 
unified democratic state it is today. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Yudhoyono highlighted poverty alleviation and 
anti-corruption efforts, central planks of his re-election 
campaign, as his administration's top achievements.  He noted 
that in 2004, Indonesia was at the bottom 10 of the 
Transparency International ranks, and it is now 55 from the 
bottom.  He also lauded Indonesia's military reform and rule 
of law as bulwarks of the democratic state. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Looking forward, Yudhoyono projected a bigger role 
on the world stage for Indonesia as the world's third largest 
democracy, a bridge between Islam and the West, a bridge for 
a consensus on climate change, and as the largest economy in 
Southeast Asia.  In order to achieve that role, Yudhoyono 
said there remains much work on transparency, military 
reform, the rule of law, educational advancement, and 
environmental protection.  These are all goals that tie in 
well with the Comprehensive Partnership.  Yudhoyono's 
ambitious vision may also provide opportunities for 
groundbreaking achievements in moving the bilateral 
relationship forward if President Obama visits in the fall. 
 
A COUNTRY WITH MANY FRIENDS AND NO ENEMIES 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Yudhoyono is well known for accommodating political 
rivals, and he gave conciliatory nods to his opponents in the 
July 8 presidential election, Megawati and Vice President 
Kalla.  He noted Megawati's contribution to Indonesia's 
democratization, and, in a piece of rhetoric that drew cheers 
and applause from his audience, he concluded his speech with 
a proverb from Kalla's ethnic group, the Buginese. 
Yudhoyono's desire to mend fences at home was reflected in 
his vision of an "all directions foreign policy" that has "a 
million friends and zero enemies." 
 
ECONOMIC NATIONALISM COMBINED WITH GLOBALIZATION 
 
¶6.  (SBU) On the economy, Yudhoyono played a balancing act 
with nods toward both economic nationalists still smarting 
from the IMF years and internationally trained economists, 
such as his vice presidential running mate Boediono.  His 
speech indicated that the lesson Yudhoyono has learned from 
the current global financial crisis is that Indonesia should 
continue to be economically self-reliant.  Yudhoyono said 
that Indonesia must not rely on exports for economic growth, 
and that "in essence, we must not be ensnared, surrender to 
and be held hostage by fundamental capitalism." He also 
stressed, however, that Indonesia should take advantage of 
economic globalization and develop a comparative advantage on 
the basis of technological innovation and entrepreneurship. 
 
STANDING UP TO TERRORISM 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Yudhoyono's remarks on terrorism were one of the 
most anticipated parts of his speech, and generated the 
strongest media reaction.  He defiantly declared that 
Indonesia would not be defeated in the fight against 
terrorism, and urged Indonesians to become directly involved 
 
JAKARTA 00001360  002 OF 002 
 
 
and "unite in the fight against the acts of terrorism . . . 
and provide information on perpetrators.  . .who hide in the 
midst of (their) communities."  Yudhoyono decried the July 17 
terrorist attacks, which came at a time when Indonesia had 
made big strides in improving the nation's security.  He 
vowed to both attack terrorism at its roots through poverty 
alleviation and to take measures to prevent and eradicate 
terrorism. 
HUME