---------------------------------------------------------- FREE for JOIN Indonesia Daily News Online via EMAIL: go to: http://www.indo-news.com/subscribe.html - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - Dengan mengClick banner sponsor anda menyumbang Rp. 1000,- untuk HomePage IndoNews. ---------------------------------------------------------- Australia urges EU to help Indonesia transition to democracy BRUSSELS, Feb 2 (AFP) - Australia on Thursday called on the European Union to support Indonesia's transition to democracy with a "generous" package of aid for the staging of the general election scheduled for June 7. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer suggested here that Europe had not recognised the importance of ensuring that the first democratic elections in the world's fourth most populous country are a success. "Indonesia has every chance to become one of the world's greatest democracies but for that to happen the elections have to work," Downer said. With Indonesia in the midst of its worst economic crisis in memory, the country faced huge problems in organising a free vote which will require the creation of 300,000 polling stations, Downer underlined. The Australian minister added that it was in the EU's own interest to do everything it could to ensure the elections pass off peacefully and are seen to be fair. "If Indonesia flourishes as a democracy, that will be very good for its economy," he said. As a result, "Europe has a vested interest in helping Indonesia through this difficult period." To date, the European Commission has earmarked only 2.5 million dollars for technical assistance for the election. Downer said he had received assurances during talks here that this figure would be reviewed. am/ma ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 5 Feb 1999 jam 04:57:20 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
