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SBY to tour ASEAN countries, receive honorary doctorate

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is set to tour three ASEAN nations and is slated to receive an honorary doctorate from a Singapore university that was once under scrutiny for the death of an Indonesian student

Bagus BT Saragih (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Mon, April 22, 2013 Published on Apr. 22, 2013 Published on 2013-04-22T10:50:00+07:00

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resident Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is set to tour three ASEAN nations and is slated to receive an honorary doctorate from a Singapore university that was once under scrutiny for the death of an Indonesian student.

Yudhoyono, First Lady Ani Yudhoyono and delegates are scheduled to depart on Monday for the six-day trip, which will include a visit to Myanmar, where conflict has continued to intensify.

Singapore will be their first destination, with the President scheduled to have a bilateral meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the Indonesia-Singapore annual Leaders' Retreat, according to presidential spokesman for foreign affairs Teuku Faizasyah.

Yudhoyono is slated to receive an honorary doctorate from Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) as part of the trip.

In 2009, the NTU was put in the spotlight following the death of one of its students, Indonesian David Hartanto Widjaja.

The Singaporean coroner's court halted investigations into the death of David, following its conclusion that his death was a suicide and not murder.

A forensic expert from the faculty of medicine at the University of Indonesia, Djaja Surya Atmadja, said at that time that any forensic doctor could see from the forensic report that David's body showed evidence of defense wounds, and that there were no indications of suicide.

The public outcry pushed the Indonesian government to carry out decisive actions to pressure Singapore to deliver 'justice and the truth'.

Yudhoyono and Lee will also discuss the development of Indonesia-Singapore cooperation in seven sectors, namely investment, air transportation, tourism, manpower, agribusiness, counterterrorism and cooperation in the Batam-Bintan-Karimun zone.

According to Faizasyah, Yudho-yono is also scheduled to address a Singaporean business and financial community at the Thomson Reuters Newsmaker event.

Yudhoyono will head to Naypyi-daw, Myanmar, on April 23. Faizasyah said Yudhoyono would have a bilateral meeting with his Myanmarese counterpart Thein Sein.

On the sidelines of the bilateral meeting, Faizasyah said there would also be signings of memorandums of understanding (MoUs) in the sectors of rice trading, capacity building and investment.

'The President is also scheduled to meet with Indonesians living in Myanmar,' he said.

The visit will be a new test for the challenging relationship between the two countries, given the persistence of sectarian violence involving Rohingyas, despite Indonesia's continuous calls for the Myanmar government to promote democracy and end discrimination.

'The Myanmar visit is basically a return to President Thein Sein's visit to Indonesia, last year. Through this visit, however, we also hope that Myanmar will be able to be more open and that democratic transformation in the country will speed up,' Faizasyah said.

On April 24, the Indonesian delegation will leave for Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, to attend the 22nd ASEAN Summit.

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