Lawmakers have asked the government to take firm diplomatic action
against Malaysia, from demanding an apology and freezing bilateral ties
to exploring possible military options.
In a hearing at the
House of Representatives with Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa on
Wednesday, legislators from both opposition and coalition parties
criticized the Foreign Ministry over the handling of the incident,
which saw three Indonesian officers arrested by Malaysian authorities
in disputed waters off Riau Islands province on Aug. 13.
“Jakarta sent a diplomatic note of protest to the Malaysian Embassy over the incident but what’s next?
Malaysia has clearly impinged on our sovereignty and have not apologized. My constituents have agreed we wage war,” said Ramadhan Pohan of the President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party.
Communications and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring posted on Twitter that was estimated Jakarta would need to “spend Rp 30 trillion [US$3.2 billion] a month on a war with Malaysia,” although said war should be the last resort “if [Malaysian violations] continue”.
Marty said the Foreign Ministry had exhausted all diplomatic means to secure the release of three officers from the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry, denouncing claims his office had yielded to pressure from the Malaysian government.
He also promised to accelerate border negotiations with the reluctant Malaysia, which wants to first settle a similar dispute with Singapore.
He said both countries would start its first joint commission this September with a highlight of discussion on the border dispute to prepare for a separate border negotiation in the future. “We will defend our sovereignty and will not give up one piece of territory,” said Marty.
At Wednesday’s hearing, lawmakers pushed Marty for explanations as to why the Malaysian authorities had handcuffed the three Indonesian officials and made them wear prison garb.
“You said they were treated well. Is being handcuffed and stripped almost naked good treatment? They disgraced us,” said Sidarto Danusubroto from Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
“Maybe the Indonesian ambassador [to Malaysia] can just stay here. No need to return to Malaysia until the dispute is cleared,” said Enggartiasto Lukita from Golkar.
Despite not ruling out a freezing of ties, Marty said it would only harm Jakarta’s interests amid the high frequency of disputes with the neighboring country, which employs around 2 million Indonesian migrant workers.
Marty said there should be better coordination and operating procedure in the future to prevent similar incidents occurring over disputed territory.
Arif Havas Oegroseno, director general of international treaties at the Foreign Ministry, said both claimants could apply the Malacca Strait model as one option to manage the disputed territory.
“The Malaysian and Indonesian navy could both operate in the Malacca Strait under an agreed operating procedure to deal with piracy.”
Bonggas Adi Chandra, a lecturer at Parahyangan Catholic University in Bandung, said the options of freezing ties and war mentioned by the legislators were “excessive” because it would only harm Jakarta’s interests. “We should not put all the blame on the Foreign Ministry because other institutions share the responsibility,” he said.
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