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Relations with New Zealand
Indonesia Overview
New Zealand’s trade relationship with Indonesia is steadily growing. In the year ending June 2008, trade between Indonesia and New Zealand was worth NZ$1.78 billion FOB. Indonesia was New Zealand’s seventh largest export market for the year ending June 2008, and the largest NZ export market in Southeast Asia. Within ASEAN, Indonesia is ranked New Zealand’s fourth largest bilateral trading partner. The Indonesian and New Zealand markets are complementary and largely non-competitive. That said, there are sectors of mutual interest. For example, in forestry and wood products our bilateral trade is worth around NZ$200 million, almost equally divided between imports and exports.
In the year ending June 2008, the value of New Zealand exports to Indonesia was NZ$958.7 million, up 47 percent on the previous year. New Zealand’s dairy exports to Indonesia were NZ$408 million and paper and wood products were NZ$110 million. New Zealand’s exports of frozen beef and of ferrous waste and scrap are two sectors that have rapidly expanded each year since 2002. The dairy industry continues to find new products to export to Indonesia, with whey products recently finding a sizable market. Exports of timber have also seen a significant expansion.
Indonesia’s imports to New Zealand were valued at NZ$823 million in the 12 months ending June 2008, a 12% increase over the previous 12 months. Of the ASEAN countries, Indonesia is New Zealand’s fourth-largest source of imports. In the year ending June 2008, New Zealand imported forest and wood products from Indonesia worth NZ$62 million. Indonesian exporters are rapidly increasing their share of the New Zealand market for petroleum oil (crude and refined), coal, and natural rubber, textiles, clothing and footwear. Crude oil, worth NZ$309 million in the 12 months ending June 2008, is Indonesia’s largest single commodity export to New Zealand. The services sector offers considerable scope for growth, especially in the education sector.
New Zealand signed a Trade and Investment Framework (TIF) with Indonesia during former Trade Minister Hon Phil Goff’s visit to Jakarta in August 2007. The first TIF working group meeting was held in Wellington between officials in July 2008. The TIF provides a basis for facilitating trade and investment flows between the two countries.
New Zealand and Indonesia have had diplomatic relations and a development assistance programme since the 1950s. A New Zealand Government tsunami aid package of NZ$68 million was announced on 18 January 2005, the biggest ever New Zealand response to a humanitarian crisis. The New Zealand Agency for International Development (NZAID) is responsible for managing this response. Of this package, approximately NZ$25 million was directed to relief and reconstruction programmes in affected areas of Indonesia in the 2004/2005 financial year. That was channelled through selected UN agencies operational on the ground and New Zealand NGOs working with local partners. A further NZ$20 million of the package has been allocated over a five-year period to an expansion by 50% of New Zealand’s existing bilateral programme in Indonesia.
The overall focus of the wider Indonesia programme is on poverty elimination by supporting democratisation, economic reform and social development. The programme, with a budget of NZ$60 million over five years (NZ$40 million before the tsunami), concentrates on six key areas: Basic Education, Community Development, Natural Resource Development, Humanitarian Assistance, Governance, Institution/Capacity Building, and a long-term reconstruction and development programme in Aceh and Northern Sumatra. The five year programme comes to an end in 2008 and a new Indonesia programme strategy will be developed in early 2009. The new strategy will identify priority sectors and areas of geographic focus and determine the level and nature of future bilateral NZAID assistance to Indonesia.
Commercial air services between New Zealand and Indonesia are governed by the May 1988 Air Services Agreement and the associated August 1999 Memorandum of Understanding which allow for services between Indonesia and New Zealand via intermediate points in Australia. Garuda Indonesia commercial services between Jakarta/Denpasar and Auckland are currently suspended.
New Zealand is one of Indonesia's leading suppliers of dairy products. It is also a growing market for New Zealand beef and forestry products. In 1998, Indonesia disestablished quantitative restrictions on dairy and meat imports. Approximately 90% of New Zealand's exports to Indonesia are primary products (principally dairy products (about 40%), wood pulp, other wood products and meat).
As a result of the significant reform in the Indonesian military (TNI) and the strengthening of our bilateral relationship, at the end of 2006 New Zealand resumed low-level cooperation with the Indonesian armed forces (TNI), which had been suspended in 1999 in protest at the failure of authorities to hold accountable TNI officers responsible for crimes in East Timor. Bilateral defence activities have resumed in the area of military education and training.
In 2007, around 484 full fee-paying Indonesian students attended New Zealand educational institutions. 281 students attended New Zealand universities, 152 at Private Training Enterprises and 51 at schools.
In the year ending July 2008, 6,837 Indonesians made short-term visits to New Zealand (staying less than 12 months) and there is a small but growing Indonesian resident community in New Zealand. In the year ending July 2008, 188 Indonesians had New Zealand residence applications approved.
New Zealand and Indonesia enjoy an open trading relationship. Occasional trade access problems that arise are usually worked through promptly. Inaugural bilateral Trade and Investment Framework talks were held in Wellington in July 2008, under the Framework signed in 2007.
New Zealand and Indonesia cooperate on security, political and economic issues through multilateral forums such as the United Nations, World Trade Organisation, APEC, ASEAN Post-Ministerial Conference, ASEAN Regional Forum and the Cairns Group of agricultural exporting nations. Indonesia and New Zealand also participate in regional and multilateral groupings that promote closer linkages between the countries of ASEAN and Australia/New Zealand (AFTA/CER) and Asia and Latin America. Indonesia became a Pacific Islands Forum Dialogue Partner in August 2001 and both countries participate in the annual South West Pacific Dialogue. Since 2005, Indonesia and New Zealand have also been partners in the East Asia Summit.
Post 9/11 there has been growing international support for interfaith and inter-civilisational dialogues aimed at building cooperation and respect for other cultures and faiths. Such dialogues can support wider counter-terrorist strategies and help to counter terrorist recruitment by addressing religious radicalisation and strengthening the position of religious moderates. Like Indonesia, New Zealand is an active supporter of interfaith and inter-cultural dialogues. Indonesia hosted the first meeting of the Asia-Pacific Regional Interfaith Dialogue at Yogyakarta in December 2004 while New Zealand hosted the third meeting of the Dialogue at Waitangi in May 2007. The Fourth Dialogue, held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in April, highlighted the progress Dialogue countries have made since the inaugural meeting in promoting stable and cohesive communities. New Zealand and Indonesia are also fellow members of the New York-based Group of Friends supporting the Alliance of Civilisations, a broader inter-cultural initiative aimed at building mutual trust and understanding between societies.
New Zealand continues to engage with Indonesia on a variety of interfaith and inter-cultural activities, offering, in 2008, an Indonesian Muslim Youth Leaders exchange to New Zealand, a Media Exchange for New Zealand journalists to participate in intercultural events in Indonesia and supporting academic visits between the two countries. New Zealand participated in the Third Global Intermedia Dialogue in Bali in May, and welcomed the support of the Indonesian Government and Press Council for the EAS Regional Media Programme, which was held in Jakarta in November 2008.
The Indonesia Chapter of the ASEAN-New Zealand Combined Business Council, based in Auckland, promotes business relations between New Zealand and Indonesia, as does a similar organisation based in Jakarta. New Zealand and Indonesian government and business representatives met under the auspices of the Indonesia-New Zealand Joint Commission on Economic and Trade Relations (JETC), to facilitate business and trade relations. Based on agreement reached during the visit of President Yudhoyono in 2005, the JETC was elevated to a Joint Ministerial Commission, which met for the first time in Jakarta in May 2007. The Asia New Zealand Foundation is active in promoting greater understanding of Indonesia and other Asian countries among New Zealanders. The New Zealand-Indonesia Association also promotes Indonesian culture in New Zealand.
Land Area - 1,904,443 kmē - Population - 238 million (July 2008 est.) - Capital City - Jakarta - Religion - Muslim (officially 88% of the population), with significant Christian, Hindu and Buddhist minorities - Language - Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia), plus approximately 360 regional languages and dialects - Currency - Rupiah - Exchange rate - NZ$1 = Rp6,182 (November 2008) - EEZ - 3,166,163 km²
Political system - Constitutional democracy; -
National government - Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was elected President on 20 September 2004 in Indonesia’s first direct presidential election, replacing Megawati Sukarnoputri -
National legislature - The 550-member House of Representatives (DPR) was elected by popular vote on 5 April 2004. The Regional Representatives’ Assembly (DPD), consisting of 4 representatives from each of the 32 provinces, was also elected by popular vote on 5 April 2004. The highest constitutional body, the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR), which consists of the DPR and the DPD sitting together, is required to meet once every 5 years. In 2002, a constitutional amendment rendered the MPR of equal status to that of the president and parliament (formerly it had been superior to both) -
Last election - April 2004 (parliamentary), September 2004 (presidential) -
Next election due - April-2009 (parliamentary), mid-2009 (presidential) -
Head of State - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono -
Head of Government - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
- Key Ministers - Vice President: Jusuf Kalla, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs: Widodo Adi Sucipto, Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance: Sri Mulyani Indrawati, Co-ordinating Minister for People’s Welfare: Aburizal Bakrie, Minister of Foreign Affairs: Dr Hassan Wirajuda, Minister of Defence: Juwono Sudarsono, Minister of Trade: Dr Mari Pangestu - Main Political parties - Golkar (leading party of the Suharto era), Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI P), National Awakening Party (PKB), United Development Party (PPP), National Mandate Party (PAN), Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), Democrat Party (PD).
GDP (nominal) - US$ 433 billion (2007 est.) - GDP (PPP) - US$ 844 billion (2007) - GDP breakdown - Goods: 60%, Services: 40% - GDP per capita (PPP) - US$3,600 (2007) - Real GDP growth - 2007: 6.3%, 2006: 5.4%, 2005: 5.6% - Exports of goods - US$118 billion (2007 est.) - Imports of goods - US$84.9 billion (2007 est.) - Main exports - Crude oil/natural gas, textiles - Current account - US$11.01 billion (2007 est.) - Inflation - 2007: 6.4%, 2006: 13.1% - Gross external debt - US$140.7 billion (2007)
NZ Exports (FOB) - NZ$958.7 million (June 2008) - Main Exports - Milk/dairy products (42.6%), wood and paper products (11.3%), meat products (11.9%) - NZ Imports (CIF) - NZ$823.1 million (June 2008) - Main Imports - Fuel products (petroleum/crude oil, coal) (50.9%), wood and paper products (10.1%) - Services Trade - Around 484 fee-paying Indonesian students studied in New Zealand in 2007, and 6,929 Indonesians visited New Zealand in 2006.
Indonesia is the world’s third largest democracy, with the largest Muslim population in the world. The population is estimated to be 235.8 million (the fourth most populous country in the world). Indonesia is also the world’s largest archipelago with approximately 18,000 islands spanning the equator and three time zones. It is ethnically diverse, with around 360 languages spoken. There are six official state religions or belief systems: Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Confucianism and Buddhism. Approximately 88% of the population is officially Muslim (Protestants make up 5%, Roman Catholics 3%, Hindus 2%, Buddhists and Confucians 1%).
Mainstream Indonesian Islam is moderate, relatively tolerant and less austere than in most other parts of the world. Since its arrival in Indonesia in the 13th century, Islam has been superimposed on a mixture of Hinduism, Buddhism and indigenous animist beliefs. It has traditionally been dominated by Sufi mysticism and a syncretic (inclusive rather than exclusive) approach, although since the early 19th century there have been a variety of modern or orthodox reactions against this syncretic tradition. The last two decades have seen a trend towards more visible Muslim piety, especially noticeable among some members of the urban middle classes and youth.
The main ideological strands in Indonesian politics are secular/nationalist and religious. The former has always been in the ascendancy and is for the most part supported by the main Muslim organisations, who guardedly accept the principle of a state that does not privilege one particular religion. Indonesia’s own version of a secular-oriented ideology is “Pancasila” (designed by the nation’s first president, Soekarno) which among other things requires belief in a single god but pointedly does not tie that belief to a specific religion. Since independence, Pancasila has been a sore point for the Islamist minority, who seek at the very least some form of constitutional requirement for the state to enforce Islamic principles on its Muslim population.
Indonesia’s political system is a constitutional democracy. The current system is the result of various constitutional amendments after the fall of the authoritarian President Soeharto in 1998. The president is now elected in a direct general election every five years (until 2004 the president was elected by the MPR). The legislature is made up of two bodies: the House of Representatives (DPR) and the Regional Representatives’ Assembly (DPD), mandated to deal with regional affairs. The supreme constitutional body is the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR), consisting of both the DPR and DPD sitting together. The MPR is the final arbiter – after Parliament and the Constitutional Court – of constitutional amendments and impeachment proceedings. It sat frequently until 2004, but is now expected to sit only once during a presidential term unless the nation is confronted by a major political crisis.
Indonesia has considerable influence in regional and international affairs, both bilaterally and through forums such as the UN, APEC, ASEAN, EAS, OPEC and the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). It is currently a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (2007-08). Indonesia is important to New Zealand and other members of the Asia-Pacific region by virtue of its size, strategic location and natural resources.
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A number of Hindu and Buddhist kingdoms, centred on Sumatra and Java, covered much of Indonesia’s modern territory before the gradual ascendancy of Islam and then the arrival of European traders and imperialists. The last major Hindu kingdom, Majapahit, reached its height in the 14th century and covered much of the archipelago. It was replaced by local kingdoms and sultanates, which one by one were taken under Dutch administration or conquered by Dutch forces. The Dutch did not finally incorporate into the Netherlands East Indies all of what is now Indonesia until the early 20th century.
Indonesia declared independence from the Netherlands in August 1945, after three years of rule by a Japanese wartime administration. The Dutch only ceded sovereignty in 1949 after four years of intermittent armed struggle with a medley of pro-independence forces fighting under national, provincial and religious banners. However, the Dutch remained as the colonial power in Papua (Netherlands New Guinea) until 1962, when administering authority was handed over to Indonesia. Papua’s incorporation into Indonesia became official with a much-disputed consultation of Papuan representatives in 1969, the “Act of Free Choice”. At that point, Indonesia’s borders became identical with those of the former Netherlands East Indies.
The post-independence political landscape has been dominated by Presidents Soekarno (1949-66) and Soeharto (1967-98). The Soekarno years were marked by political instability, economic decline and the dismantling of Indonesia's first parliamentary democracy. Soekarno was a charismatic and aspirant revolutionary leader whose name still has widespread public appeal in Indonesia, evidenced by the popularity of his daughter, former president Megawati Soekarnoputri. He pursued a radical foreign policy, which included military confrontation with Malaysia and the Netherlands (in Papua).
The instability of the Soekarno era culminated in an abortive armed coup in September 1965, which the military blamed on the Indonesian Communist Party. It is estimated that 500,000 or more Indonesians were killed, mainly in Java and Bali, in the consequent violent suppression of the Communist Party and alleged communists. Major General Soeharto rose to power during the violent upheaval and formally assumed the Presidency in March 1967.
President Soeharto's rule from 1967-98 was marked by economic development, political stability and close relations with the West. Social indicators such as life expectancy and literacy improved rapidly during this period. It was, however, marred by human rights abuses, centralised authoritarian rule, weakening of the non-executive branches of government, increased military involvement in politics and business, the violent annexation of East Timor in 1975, and rampant corruption and nepotism. The final years of the Soeharto era were marked by growing public disenchantment and rising street protests, fuelled by the severe impact of the 1997 Asian financial crisis and the collapse of the rupiah. Having lost public, military and Cabinet support, Soeharto resigned on 21 May 1998.
The sudden collapse of President Soeharto's centralised authoritarian rule was accompanied by a resurgence of communal and separatist tensions across Indonesia. Other challenges facing Indonesia's post-Soeharto governments included the need to revitalise the economy through measures such as bank recapitalisation, commercial law reform and restoration of investor confidence; management of the devolution of political and economic powers to the regions; strengthening the non-executive branches of government; the redefinition of civil/military relations; and enhancing respect for the human rights of Indonesians. Analysts identify corruption as a major problem despite the efforts of the last two administrations to make some inroads into it.
Soeharto had restricted political party activity by ensuring that the regime, the military and the bureaucracy all actively supported the Golkar Party, and by allowing only two other parties to compete in elections against Golkar (which inevitably won with large majorities). With the end of restrictions on forming parties in 1998, many new parties emerged and ran in the 1999 and 2004 legislative elections. A total of 24 parties ran in 2004, and Golkar gained the largest proportion (22%) of votes. As the president heads and appoints the government, he/she has been obliged to ensure majority support by forming multi-party cabinets with 5-7 parties represented, alongside a number of non-party technocrats. In general, the parties have few clearly defined platforms or policies distinguishing them from their competitors; instead, most of them appeal to traditional loyalty groups (e.g., secular nationalists, various strands within the broad Muslim community, Christians).
The six years from Soeharto’s downfall to President Yudhoyono’s election saw three transitional presidents. Soeharto was succeeded by his Vice-President, BJ Habibie, who responded to public expectations by introducing political reforms, the most significant being the genuinely open and pluralistic national parliamentary elections held in June 1999 and a programme of regional autonomy. President Habibie's government also oversaw a UN-sponsored ballot in East Timor in August 1999 (which resulted in East Timor’s secession from Indonesia later that year and full independence, after a period of United Nations administration, in 2002). The MPR elected moderate Muslim leader Abdurrahman Wahid as President in late 1999. His government made limited progress towards addressing the longer-term problems faced by Indonesia. In July 2001 the MPR voted overwhelmingly to revoke President Wahid's mandate and replaced him with his Vice-President, Megawati Soekarnoputri.
During President Megawati’s term, macro-economic indicators improved (although foreign direct investment (FDI) remained sluggish and unemployment very high) and there was enhanced political stability. Her government put in place the mechanism for the first direct Presidential election. In the run-off round of that election on 20 September 2004, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono won the popular vote by 61% to Megawati’s 39%.
President Yudhoyono faces similar challenges to those that confronted his predecessors in the post-Soeharto era. The need to address corruption, inadequate FDI flows, unemployment/underemployment and legal reform are priorities for his Government. A defining achievement of his presidency so far has been the peace agreement and subsequent peaceful elections in Aceh, ending years of armed conflict. Yudhoyono has also indicated that he places importance on consolidating the Special Autonomy Law for Papua and West Papua. The military (TNI) remains an influential player in Indonesia – principally as a consequence of its territorial command structure – although it no longer has a direct role in political affairs, having lost its reserved seats in parliament after October 2004.
International human rights organisations continue to express concern about human rights, particularly in Papua and West Papua. But there is recognition by many observers of a discernible improvement in respect for human rights in Indonesia generally. In 2000, the Government agreed to approve the establishment of an ad hoc human rights tribunal to try those implicated in the crimes against humanity committed in East Timor in 1999. Eighteen officers and Government officials, including three army generals, were tried, but higher courts have since overturned all of the six sentences handed down by the tribunals. A Truth and Friendship Commission (CTF) between Indonesia and Timor-Leste released its final report in July 2008. The CTF’s report found that crimes against humanity occurred in East Timor in 1999, and ascribed institutional responsibility for those crimes to civilian groups (both for and against independence) and organs of the Indonesian government. In line with its mandate, the CTF did not recommend individual prosecutions, rather it recommended a process of institutional reforms aimed at creating a culture of accountability. Those recommendations have yet to be implemented.
The legislature has also passed a law on the formation of a national Truth and Reconciliation Commission; and there are provisions for equivalent province-level commissions in the peace agreement for Aceh and the Special Autonomy package for Papua. But the Constitutional Court revoked the law in 2006, with the revocation also to apply to province-level commissions. Work on a revised law is currently under way.
In 2004, Indonesia’s first permanent Human Rights Court (for Eastern Indonesia) had been established in Makassar, Sulawesi. It is the first of four planned nationally. In the same year, Indonesia’s Ministry of Justice and Human Rights launched its five-year National Action Plan on Human Rights 2004-2009, which deals with human rights dissemination, education and implementation at every level of government, including the Police and the TNI. In 2006, Indonesia ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and International Covenant for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and has indicated it will look to join the International Criminal Court (ICC).
There have been encouraging signs with respect to combating corruption. Many senior officials and members of parliament have been convicted since 2004 for corruption-related offenses. Corruption, however, is still prevalent at all levels of society and judicial corruption is an especially intractable problem. There is a general consensus that it will likely take more than a generation if Indonesia is to make significant progress in this area.
The Indonesian economy grew less dependent on oil and agriculture during the Suharto New Order. The severe contraction of Indonesia's economy at the time of the 1997 Asian financial crisis, however, highlighted the shortcomings of the New Order economic model (increasingly wasteful use of foreign investment, declining international competitiveness). Indonesia's GDP contracted by 13% in 1998. GDP per capita in 2000 was US$671, well down on the 1996 level of US$1,150. The economy has shown signs of recovery more recently, and GDP per capita (PPP) was estimated at US$3,600 in 2007. Economic growth has gradually increased from 3.3% in 2001 (led by the export sector) to 6.3% in 2007; the figure for 2008 is estimated to be about 6.1%. Services (which represent 42% of GDP), manufacturing (28%), agriculture (15%) and mining (9%) account for most of the origins of Indonesia's GDP.
The Indonesian Government initiated a wide-ranging economic reform programme in 1998, with strong IMF advisory and financial support, to address the impact on Indonesia of the 1997 Asian financial crisis and to lay the foundations for long-term sustainable growth. On 1 January 2004 Indonesia graduated from the IMF’s lending programme, and in early 2007 took the decision to disband the Consultative Group on Indonesia, a donor forum of which New Zealand was a member, preferring instead to focus on bilateral development assistance. The World Bank welcomed this step as a further sign of Indonesia’s renewed economic confidence.
Despite improved macroeconomic conditions, prospects for a sustained high level of economic growth will depend to a large extent on the pace of critical economic reforms, particularly those concerning investment, tax and labour laws, and the economic impact of decentralisation. All of these factors are relevant to the restoration of investor confidence, which the IMF regards as central to Indonesia's long-term economic recovery. The Investment Law passed by the Parliament in early 2007 is seen as a crucial step in stimulating renewed investor interest. Indonesia operates a relatively open economy, but non-tariff barriers (NTBs) remain an impediment to trade. With a strong programme of administrative decentralisation in place, there are sharp contrasts between the economies of Indonesia’s 33 provinces. Certain provinces with a major export resource base (particularly hydrocarbons or minerals, but also specialist agricultural commodities) are becoming markedly wealthy.
The impact of the current global economic turmoil has been felt in Indonesia, but aside from the collateral risks of capital outflow due to tighter global liquidity conditions, the country's fundamentals and economic structure mean it is not in apparent danger right now. Indonesia has been feeling the effects principally through pressure on the value of the rupiah, a significant weakening of the stock market, and falling commodity prices. Policymakers are wary, however, about prospects for 2009, when worsening economic conditions in Indonesia’s key export markets may lead to significant effects on the domestic economy, such as large-scale job losses. The government has developed a number of policy responses to that threat, including a package of fiscal stimulus.
Foreign policy under President Sukarno (1949-66) was radical, characterised by Sukarno's self-styled role as leader of the Non-Aligned Movement. Under President Suharto (1967-98), Indonesian foreign policy was marked by an emphasis on stability, with Indonesia developing a leading role in ASEAN, APEC and the Non-Aligned Movement but also maintaining good relations with the West. President Yudhoyono has maintained an emphasis on Indonesia’s traditional “free and active” foreign policy settings, and in that context has indicated Indonesia’s increasing willingness to become involved in regional and international issues, including in the Middle East. Indonesia’s non-permanent membership of the United Nations Security Council, which expired in December 2008, saw its stance on a number of issues come to increased international notice.
Indonesia is a leading member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and has been at the forefront of moves to renew the body, particularly in the drafting of a new ASEAN Charter (which was signed by leaders at the Singapore ASEAN Summit in November 2007 and entered into force in December 2008) and the establishment of an ASEAN Community.
Indonesia was vaulted into the international fight against terrorism after the Bali bombings in 2002. These were followed by the bombings of the Marriott Hotel in 2003 and outside the Australian Embassy in Jakarta in 2004, and smaller backpack bombings in Bali in 2005. Since then there have been no anti-Western terrorist attacks. There have also been terrorist attacks on domestic targets, predominantly in Maluku and Central Sulawesi during the period 1999-2005.
Japan, ASEAN countries (especially Singapore), the United States, the EU and Australia are important export markets and sources of investment for Indonesia. Indonesia's economy is reasonably well integrated into international markets, with exports equivalent to 25% of GDP. Indonesia is a capital importing country. Foreign investment declined sharply after the 1997 financial crisis, but has shown some signs of recovery since 2007.
New Zealand's and Indonesia's political leaders and ministers maintain regular contact through bilateral meetings when attending multilateral and regional gatherings. Former Prime Minister Helen Clark made bilateral visits to Indonesia in May 2002 and July 2007. Hon Phil Goff made bilateral visits to Indonesia in April 2000 and March 2002 as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and in August 2007 as Minister of Trade and Defence. The former Prime Minister and Mr Goff both visited Jakarta in January 2005 for the ASEAN-led post-tsunami summit. Former Minister of Foreign Affairs Rt Hon Winston Peters visited Jakarta in May 2007 to chair the Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) with his counterpart, Dr Hassan Wirajuda. Hon Rick Barker, former Minister for Civil Defence gave a keynote address at a joint Indonesia-New Zealand hosted Disaster Risk Management Conference in Jakarta 5-6 August 2008. Former Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries and Forestry, Hon Jim Anderton called on his counterpart ministers in Jakarta on 13 August this year to discuss engagement on forestry issues, prevention of illegal logging and agricultural cooperation.
President Yudhoyono visited New Zealand in April 2005, accompanied by the former Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs (Aburizal Bakrie), the former State Secretary (Yusril Ihza Mahendra), and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs (Hassan Wirajuda), Trade (Mari Pangestu) and former Minister of Finance (Jusuf Anwar). President Abdurrahman Wahid visited New Zealand in 2001, the first visit to New Zealand by an Indonesian President since 1972. Hassan Wirajuda, also Foreign Minister under President Megawati, visited New Zealand in November 2001.
The Safetravel website provides a travel advisory for travellers to Indonesia [external link].
