Partnership and Peace

BERLIN/COLOMBO/BANDA ACEH Following the undersea earthquake in South-East Asia, the German Federal Government is pressing on with its efforts to extend its influence, using a ,,Partnership Initiative"and offers of open-ended funding. These efforts are concentrated on Sri Lanka and the north-west Indonesian province of Aceh. Berlin seeks to intervene as a ,,mediator"in the hostilities in these regions, in which civil wars are being fought out. Foreign Minister Fischer is currently on a fact-finding mission in the area in which Germany is interested. According to the German Foreign Office, the plan is for political ,,cleaning-up"operations in South-East Asia. Although German troops have already arrived in Aceh, the German government is opposed to the creation of a civilian rapid-response unit for humanitarian aid, contrary to the intentions of many EU Member States. The competing German operation is intended to raise national profile in opposition to - among others - the United States.

In the wake of Foreign Minister Fischer's visit, many scouts or ,,sherpas"from German firms are using German long-term ,,reconstruction aid"as an opportunity to seek out lucrative contracts for infrastructure in South-East Asia.

Responsibility

Having already, in his New Year address, announced a ,,partnership initiative", the German chancellor will, this coming Wednesday (12 January) be setting out its precise details when he meets representatives of the associations of municipal authorities and the Minister-Presidents of the German Laender. The object of the ,,initiative"is the transfer to Laender and municipalities of ,,responsibility"for areas and communities in the states most affected by the flooding. Although the Chancellor in Berlin has said that the ,,partnerships"must first be agreed with the governments concerned, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development has already announced the setting-up of a ,,Reconstruction in Asia"coordination office. 1)Its seizing of a mandate - which it justifies on humanitarian grounds - is typical of the German approach to issues of international law and infringes the affected states' a priori sovereign rights.

Reconstruction

As Chancellor Schroeder has said, Berlin wants to support reconstruction projects to the tune of EUR 500 million over the course of the next five years. The primary purpose of these is to get the water supply running again, restore health care provision, and provide temporary accommodation. The Technisches Hilfswerk (THW - technical aid organisation) is already giving its attention to the restoration of the water sector. The Deutscher Industrie- und Handelskammertag (DIHK - congress of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce) recommends that ,,businesses wanting to get involved over and above the making of donations"should work in tandem with the German Chambers of Foreign Trade in the South-East Asian countries affected. 2)

Development aid

In an effort to resist encroaching German influence, the Indian and Thai governments are refusing to accept the money offered by Berlin. Pressure on both states to open up their borders unconditionally is increasing from day to day. As a result, German efforts are being focused on the civil-war-torn regions in Sri Lanka and in the province of Aceh in north-western Indonesia. The CDU-aligned Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Sri Lanka has made it known that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a rebel organisation, has refused the Colombo government's offer of close cooperation in dealing with the disaster 3); German involvement in reconstruction work in rebel-held areas goes back many years 4). Berlin is following Tokyo in seeking to use ,,development aid"payments as a means of gaining influence over the warring factions.

Overlapping

As the Western industrial states race against each other, Berlin is working not only against potential competitors from the EU but also against the USA's massive military effort. Germany is refusing to give its open-ended offers of aid practical expression as part of a civilian initiative by the EU 5), insisting on ,,going it alone"persists undeterred in deploying military and paramilitary units which overlap with the humanitarian aid effort. ,,Please, just leave us alone,"said the Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra recently in response to the Western industrial states' attempts at gaining influence. 6)His government is attempting to deal with the catastrophic flood damage using its own resources in a bid to defend its own sovereignty against the West.

1) BMZ richtet Koordinierungsstelle fuer Partnerschaften mit Flutgebieten ein; www.bmz.de 07.01.2005
2) AHKs koordinieren Fluthilfe vor Ort. Wansleben: ,,Mittelfristig geht es um den Wiederaufbau"; www.dihk.de 06.01.2005
3) Politische Implikationen der Flutkatastrophe in Asien. Kurzberichte der Aussenstellen der Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Indonesien, Sri Lanka, Thailand und Indien, 5. Januar 2004
4) Bundeskanzler Schroeder ermutigt deutsche Wirtschaft zu Investitionen in Sri Lanka; www.bundesregierung.de 14.03.2001
5) EU will Hilfe fuer Katastrophenregion koordinieren; AP 07.01.2005
6) ,,Wir brauchen keine Hilfe"; Die Welt 04.01.2005


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