MOST INDONESIANS IN MALAYSIA NOT INFLUENCED BY BENDERA - M'SIAN DPM

PUTRAJAYA, Sept 2 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said
Thursday he believed that the majority of Indonesian nationals working in
Malaysia would not be influenced by the call for them to return to Indonesia
for good.

"I believe the majority of them here are people who value what we have done
to help them and we very much appreciate their service to Malaysians," he said
when commenting on the call by the People's Democratic Front (Bendera) for them
to return to Indonesia and not work in Malaysia anymore.

Muhyiddin said this interdependence should be the basis of consideration and
not any suggestion by certain quarters in Indonesia.

"Even if they return to Indonesia, there is no guarantee from Bendera that
they will secure jobs and earn an income," he told reporters after chairing a
meeting of the National Council on Local Government, here.

Muhyiddin was asked to comment on newspaper reports quoting Bendera
coordinator Mustar Bona Ventura Manurung as suggesting that Jakarta immediately
find ways to take back about two million Indonesian nationals working in
Malaysia, and sever diplomatic relations with Kuala Lumpur to safeguard
Indonesia's sovereignty.

The deputy prime minister said it was needless for the Malaysian government
to react to the call as it was more important to resolve outstanding problems
through diplomatic means and preserve bilateral relations in the long term.

He said all outstanding issues between the two countries would be discussed
at the meeting of the foreign ministers of Malaysia and Indonesia in Kota
Kinabalu the capital of the east Malaysian state of Sabah Monday.

In JAKARTA, for the first time since the maritime border incident near
Bintan island on Aug 13, a group of Indonesians held a peaceful demonstration in
front of the Malaysian embassy in the Indonesian capital.

This comes a day after Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
addressed the nation live over television and stated the government's stand to
use diplomatic means to resolve the border dispute and Indonesia's commitment to
maintain good relations with Malaysia.

About 50 people from a group calling itself Lembaga Macan Kemayoran
expressed the desire to see both the Indonesian and Malaysian governments
resolve issues through diplomatic consultations.

The demonstrators carried posters of both Susilo and Malaysian Prime
Minister Najib Razak. They then went to the Akbar Kemayoran Mosque and prayed
for peace in both countries.

As usual, the Indonesian police maintained tight security at the Malaysian
embassy.

Unlike the demonstration in front of the embassy, a group of 30 students of
the Kesatuan Aksi Lintas Mahasiswa (Kalam) protested in front of the CIMB Niaga
Bank in Jalan Sudirman near Senayan and called for the Malaysian bank to be shut
down in Indonesia.

A number of policemen were stationed there to control the demonstrators who
hurled eggs in the direction of the bank building.

The demonstrations began following the detention of seven Malaysian
fishermen by Indonesian maritime authorities for alleged trespassing in the
vicinity of Bintan island.

Malaysian maritime authorities arrested three of the Indonesian maritime
officers, contending that the fishermen were within Malaysian waters. All of the
officers and fishermen have been released by both countries.
-- BERNAMA