Excellent positive stuff John Wing.

“Development co-operation on many levels at this moment is a win-win for all sides and provides a window of opportunity. Between Australia and Indonesia there is still much goodwill on both sides.”

However, it is enormously difficult, and will be seen as negative by one group or another, no matter what Australia does.

My immediate concern is that if Australia works with Indonesia to provide a better deal for Papuans, we will be seen by many to be condoning the history of oppression there, and turning a blind eye to the 1969 ‘referendum of no choice’.

There will also be strong resistance from some Indonesian quarters who insist that Indonesia is perfectly capable of looking after the situation itself and does not want Australia ‘meddling’ in its affairs.

Unfortunately, with current tensions, miscommunication becomes a major issue, with things likely to be exaggerated, twisted and completely fabricated by some minorities. So it might just be the best win-win situation for Australia to stay right away from Papua and step up the lobbying with SBY and the UN over human rights issues there….in a very sensitive and diplomatic manner!

So now we are invited to help fund development in a place where we are told to mind our own business. Indonesia reserves the "right" to conduct extrajudicial killings of dissidents but wants Australia to remove our supposed impediments to regional co-operation. They want us to fund development in a place where we have no means of ensuring that the funds are not fraudulently diverted. I'll bet they do.

Well that certainly wins the "brown eye" award for limited strategic vision. No wonder they were eager to print it in the Djakarta Post.

What I would like to know is what Australia should do if a bunch of students from Djakarta, persecuted for their political views, fled in a boat to Australia? Have we now given the Indonesian government the right to determine the treatment of any sort of escaping dissident? Or is this merely limited to Papuan separatists?

And lets get this straight, the concept of a nation's "territorial integrity" does not extend to the lands of people who do not wish to be part of that nation. And the suggestion that our aid money should be spent in a way that merely provides palliative treatment for the injustices perpetrated by others is abhorent.

I have a feeling that Australia would be not be wise to make a bilateral agreement over West Papua, over these issues. It is too easy for the two to start arguing again, begin the game of suspicion, and I don't think they'd get much work done. There really needs to be more intiatives from other ASEAN countries to help out, so that not one country is seen as having a big agenda.

If the Indonesian authorities protect the the welfare and aide workers to just do their job, then thats about as much we can aim for.

In health, HIV and environmental science, including vulcanography, surely every task can be negotiated.

If the Indonesians really believes that Australia is demonstrating an agenda of imperialism, then it is most wise to pull back and let other countries facilitate the agreements with Indonesia.

If refugees land on our shores, well that is another matter. That is then our problem, and we do need to listen to their stories, recognise their ordeal, and this should be of no offence to Indonesia.

Sounds like a wonderfull arrangement for everyone, except the West Papuans.

I'm ok jack, Shame about the genocode,

The latest earthquake to hit Indonesia have left 3500 with loss of life.

Indonesia has taken the offered 3 million dollars of Australian Taxpayer funds to assist in the wake of such a natural disaster.

Indonesia refused and turned down the offer of medical and other on the ground assistance.

Australia provided monetary aid and ground assistance when the Tsunami almost wiped the coastlines of Indonesia and its region away.

The volatile region of Aceh was cleared and infrastructure built by Australian ground troops of engineers and labourers in this volatile area which seems to be governed by a different regime to the Indonesian government.

Once the region was stable and living and basic needs returned to the community they were asked to leave by the regime who had regrouped by then.

Was there a win, win in all of this?