Australia and Indonesia. Two very different neighbours? (part 3)

First of all, Indonesia has come a long way. Just a few years ago (until 1998), it was trundling along under the heavy hand of Soeharto. Dictatorships don't just neglect people’s basic rights, but they also establish a tightly knit elite, which in turn entrench a culture of cronyism and nepotism, corruption and then eventually social unrest.
Besides the numerous internal problems, dictatorships tend to also give the country a very bad reputation. It will be perceived as backward, perhaps violent and dangerous.

Indonesia used to be seen as exactly this. It was seen as a dangerous country, on the verge of disintegrating. Indonesia made itself no favour by violently acting against separatism, especially in Timor.
This is the political side, but perhaps far more important is the personal side. Indonesia is still seen as a somewhat savage place, where Australians sometimes get mugged, catch diseases and even get killed.
But the strongest images, which are engrained in almost all Australian people’s minds are firstly, images of fellow country people locked up and eventually killed for the use of minor drugs and secondly, boats full of poor refugees being intercepted at sea or even arriving on Australian shores from Indonesia.

The issue of the boat people is dominating in Australia’s relations with Indonesia, and that by itself is an absolutely overblown issue, which is also hardly discussed on the Indonesian side. Interestingly, most of the boat people are in fact legitimate refugees, mostly from Sri Lanka, which eventually get residence in Australia. This is exactly what a country like Australia should do. We are a rich and open country and we should be welcoming to refugees, whose homes have been destroyed.

Indonesia has recently caught a lot of spotlight as the star of Southeast Asia in terms of democratic reform and economic growth. The country is now a vibrant democracy with a burgeoning civil society. Even though still poor, many people are lifted from poverty and become part of a growing middle class.

Because Australia has been busy with China, America (as always), Japan and itself, only few people have noticed the successes in Indonesia. Typically, Australia is trading far more with New Zealand, a country of 4 million with a far smaller economy than Indonesia, than with the 220 million archipelago to the north.

This doesn't just tell us an economic story, it also tells us a story of identity. The reason is relatively simple. Australia feels much more at ease dealing, trading and working together with New Zealanders. Hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders have moved to Australia and vice versa too. They speak the same language (nearly) and have a similar past – and also present.
Indonesians on the other hand are perceived as very different. I am actually not even sure if the people as such have a bad reputation, I moreover think they have NO reputation. The knowledge and interest of Australia in Indonesia is very limited. The official Australia, even though always ready to emphasise its importance, sees Indonesia through a lense of problems: people smuggling, terrorism, religious extremism, thereby hugely patronizing its neighbour.

Indonesia in the meantime now wants to be recognized as an equal partner, and recently, the Australia media have taken up this point, with some even arguing that Australia may even become the weaker link.

Lets see if Australia can start to tackle the ghosts of the past and get used to its new role, not as THE leader of the region but as one of two leaders.