But I believe that the history of both America and Indonesia should give us hope.

WHITEHOUSE: Indonesia��s Example to the World

She does a decent job of explaining the history, pointing to the colonization of Suriname and Indonesia, and the key role the Dutch West India Company played in the slave trade.

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Despite a long history as a huge exporter of commodities, Indonesia has flipped from having a trade account surplus to a deficit in recent months, and last quarter recorded its biggest ever current-account deficit.

WSJ: Indonesian Boom Starts to Stall

It is hard to see why tiny East Timor, with its separate history, should provoke fears of the break-up of Indonesia.

ECONOMIST: A survey of Indonesia

Juwono says the prickly reaction from some probably reflects the widespread feeling that Indonesia is ready for civilian rule after a history of military dominance that has only recently diminished.

CNN: The Unlikely 'Military Man'

For a country whose population is still overwhelmingly rural, and which throughout its history has experienced recurrent food shortages, such an omission indicates a superficial analysis of Indonesia's economy.

ECONOMIST: Bitter pill