Ary Hermawan and Desy Nurhayati, The Jakarta Post, Nusa Dua, Bali | Sat, 12/12/2009 12:59 PM
The second Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) ended Friday with Asian countries expecting Indonesia to organize more activities in addition to the annual meeting at the resort island to strengthen democracy in the region.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said one of the ideas proposed during the two-day meeting was to launch an election visit program in which participating countries could learn from each other through close study. The idea was floated by Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who co-chaired the forum.
"We'll study and identify which of the proposals we need to prioritize," Marty said after closing the meeting, attended by 48 countries, including observers Italy, Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Spain and seven others.
"We'll later outline the form of such cooperation."
Hatoyama's proposal raised the suggestion that the BDF could later facilitate the involvement of the international community in making a success of the 2010 elections in Myanmar, in which opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, still under house arrest, is expected to take part.
Marty did not deny the possibility, but made clear the initiative should come from Yangon.
"Whether through the BDF or any other forums, we would like to see constructive elections *in Myanmar*," he said.
"If Myanmar considers it necessary to have *foreign involvement* in order to hold a successful election, *the BDF will facilitate it*."
The BDF, he went on, had raised the comfort level of countries considered undemocratic such as Myanmar to discuss an issue that was in the past.
"Not long ago, it was very unlikely that Myanmar was willing to talk, let alone attend a meeting like this," the minister said.
"This is the qualitative development made by the BDF."
Earlier Friday, former foreign minister Hassan Wirajuda chaired a discussion on "Democracy and the Rule of Law" with Australian Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor and Singaporean Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Zainul Abidin Rasheed as panelists.
Hassan stressed the importance of rule of law in the development of democracy through making possible respect for human rights and freedom, the very core values of democracy.
"Democracy should be reinforced by a strong system of legal and regulatory supervision, so that all individuals are equal under the law, and all public officials are responsible for their conduct under the prevailing laws," he said.
To promote rule of law, he added, a nation should reform its legal institutions, build public trust and confidence in law enforcers, and revise regulations.
"However, there is a danger that the rule of law is reduced to the rule by a condition where the law is misused by an authoritarian government to oppress people, as we experienced in the past," he said.
The discussion highlighted the need for states to give their people a greater voice in the process of drafting laws, to ensure the laws represent their aspirations.
Participants shared common views that countries in democratic transition could solve their governance problems and meet their citizens' expectations for freedom, justice, better life and equitable society. They considered it important to strike a balance between political freedom and rule of law that guaranteed stability and effective governance.
In another session on "Democracy and the Development in the Information Age", participants agreed the information age provided unprecedented horizontal and vertical access for all people to play a role and reap the benefits of development.
They agreed that through the era of knowledge and information, democracy could prosper and ensure free flow of information, and encourage creative thinking and dialogue for greater inclusiveness and continuous democratization.
The discussion was chaired by Maldives Home Affairs Minister Ahmed Shaeed, aided by panelists Zha Peixin, the vice chairman of Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress of China, and Timor Leste Foreign Affairs Minister Zacarias Albano Da Costa.
Participants said the information age made use of media channels in a democratic way, whereby good news on development was not forced upon the public but was freely available to a voluntary audience.
