Reporter: Lynn Bell
Mark Colvin: The Prime Minister John Howard has welcomed a new Australian-Indonesian security treaty as a sign of the strengthening relationship between the two countries.
The Foreign Minister Alexander Downer will fly to Indonesia on Monday to sign the treaty with his Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirajuda.
The agreement comes after two years of negotiation, and provides for greater co-operation on border protection, intelligence sharing and counter-terrorism operations. But the President of the International Commission of Jurists in Australia John Dowd says the treaty is unnecessary and has the potential to breed mistrust and resentment. In Canberra Lynn Bell reports.
Lynn Bell: The last security agreement between Australia and Indonesia was developed by Paul Keating and President Suharto in 1995. But less than four years later Indonesia tore it up when Australia led the United Nations intervention into East Timor. The Prime Minister, John Howard, says this new security treaty is a sign that both nations have moved on.
John Howard: I think it's a manifestation of the balanced maturity of the relationship. I welcome it. It will be signed next week by Mr Downer and Dr Wirajuda. It does show that our relationship has moved on and absorbed some of the adversaries surrounding it arising out of East Timor and more recently out of the 43 asylum seekers.
Lynn Bell: The Indonesian Ambassador to Australia, Hamzah Thayeb, says the treaty will strengthen the relationship between the two countries.
Hamzah Thayeb: The big picture is to continuously strengthen the relationship that we have because we cannot do otherwise, like I have been saying for geographic proximity we have to work together and this is just codifying all the principles that we have agreed upon and putting it into a document. The cooperation that we have been doing so far, which is positive.
Lynn Bell: The treaty recognises Indonesian sovereignty over Papua and both nations have agreed to respect each other's territorial integrity. The Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer.
Alexander Downer: Well the Australian government's never supported separatist movements in Indonesia. I mean unless we actually decided in the case of a foreign country that we thought that country should be broken up we would give no comfort or support to separatist movements.
Lynn Bell: But the President of the International Commission of Jurists in Australia, John Dowd, has serious concerns about the agreement, and says it should be the subject of more public debate.
John Dowd: I can see no basis for a treaty with a country that's not under attack and we're not under attack. I think it's a mask for assisting their military; therefore no case has been made for that to happen.
Lynn Bell: The Foreign Minister says the treaty will be subject to full parliamentary scrutiny and the public will be able to make submissions to the Standing Committee on Treaties.
The Greens Leader Bob Brown is also critical of the agreement, saying it's an obsequious concession to Jakarta.
Bob Brown: The Howard govt says it will actually suppress people who want to work towards independence for West Papua. That's undemocratic; it's repugnant to Australian democratic ideals.
Lynn Bell: But the Leader of the Government in the Senate, Nick Minchin rejects that assertion.
Nick Minchin: Can I reiterate in this senate that the treaty does not in any way infringe or seek to infringe on the rights to freedom of expression or freedom of association.
What the treaty does provide is that Australia and Indonesia as governments will not support or participate in activities by an person or entity which constitutes a threat to the stability, sovereignty or territorial integrity of the other.
Lynn Bell: The Greens Senator Kerry Nettle quizzed Nick Minchin further, during question time this afternoon.
Kerry Nettle: Has the Australian government put anything into this security treaty to deal with the issues of any human rights abuses that may occur in Indonesia?
Nick Minchin: Of course we will continue to urge the Indonesian government to investigate allegations of human rights abuses and to ensure that the rights of all Indonesians are protected.
Lynn Bell: The security treaty also paves the way for cooperation on nuclear power for peaceful purposes. So does that mean Indonesia will seek to import uranium from Australia? The Indonesian Ambassador, Hamzah Thayeb.
Hamzah Thayeb: I think uranium is the issue first, you are discussing this issue but if you look at the bigger picture energy is the issue. Oil is of course will not always be there it's depleting. Other sources of energy is important for everybody for the world.
Lynn Bell: Labor supports the plan to boost cooperation on counter-terrorism measures – but its reserving comment on other aspects of the security treaty, until it's been fully briefed.
Mark Colvin: Lynn Bell.