| By Andi Abdussalam
Jakarta, May 30 (ANTARA) - Indonesia is studying the United States response on Jakarta's draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) on a proposal for the extension of cooperation with the US Naval Medical Research Unit No.2 (NAMRU-2) on its service in the country.
Indonesia has proposed to the US government a draft MoU on the NAMRU-2 service extension in November last year. "I have received the US response to the MoU last week," Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said on Thursday.
A team of inter-departmental officials are discussing the new proposals from the United States, according to the foreign minister without giving details on US response.
But the Indonesian government has yet to decide any position with regard to the new proposal. Last month, many quarters raised an opposition to the government's plan to extend the cooperation with NAMRU-2.
"The government should stop and take over the operation of Namru-2 laboratory," Mutammimul Ula, member of the House of Representatives' Commission I which deals with foreign affairs, said.
During 30 years of operation in Indonesia, NAMRU-2 failed to provide the country with concrete benefits in the defense and health fields.
Mutammimul Ula claimed that other legislators agreed if the drafting process of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) released by the Foreign Ministry is terminated.
"Indonesia has now established cooperation with various institutions like the World Health Organization (WHO) to carry out researches and data transfers," he said adding that therefore the extension of cooperation with NAMRU-2 was not necessary.
Indonesia and the United States began cooperation on NAMRU-2 in the 1970s on researches of communicable diseases in Indonesia.
Since 2004, NAMRU-2 at the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta has provided assistance to the Indonesian government at the request of the Ministry of Health. It has helped in transporting specimens to one of four WHO Influenza Reference Laboratories.
NAMRU-2 conducted tests in 2004 and 2005 on samples taken from humans demonstrating signs of a flu-like illness and who were queried about their degree of contact with poultry; collaborated the Center For Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta on NAMRU-2's Viral Disease Program.
The NAMRU-2 project was terminated on January 1, 2006, however, as its contract with Indonesia expired on December 31, 2005.
Indonesia took the decision to terminate NAMRU-2 activities based on an agreement reached among the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Legal and Human Rights Affairs, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Home Affairs and other relevant agencies.
However, tests on samples of bird flu suspects to identify the H5N1 strain of virus still continued until January 2007, after which the health minister stopped sending virus specimens to the reference laboratories.
"But the on-going research such on malaria, dengue and diarrhea is still continued," Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari said last month.
The health minister herself was reluctant to extend cooperation with NAMRU-2, though the government had proposed last November an MoU cooperation extention.
Siti Fadilah Supari said NAMRU-2 had begun conducting researches on communicable diseases in Indonesia in the 1970s but the results of which were not yet concrete for the elimination of contagious diseases in Indonesia.
Therefore, according to the minister, the government should thoroughly consider it before it decided to extend the cooperation.
"Should the cooperation be extended, the government must firmly state its attitude in the new agreement," she said.
It was reported earlier that the United States had asked diplomatic immunity for all of its NAMRU-2 officials if its service was to be extended.
US Health Minister Michael O Levitt during a working visit in Indonesia last month asked the Indonesian government to give diplomatic immunity to Namru-2 staffers.
Indonesian Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono said that the Indonesian government was only prepared to grant diplomatic immunity to two US NAMRU-2 staff members.
"We are sticking to our stance that not all of Namru-2 officers will be granted diplomatic immunity. We will give the immunity to only two of the 20 US naval officers with Namru-2," he said.
Previously, Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said that in the proposed MoU, the Indonesian government included details of revisions in the previous provisions of the agreement.
"After we held an inter-departmental meeting, the Indonesian government decided to improve the provisions in the NAMRU-2 cooperation agreement," the minister said. (T.A014/A/HNG/A/E002)
(T.A014/A/A014/A/E002) 30-05-2008 22:03:19 |
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