International Hall of Fame Award

[Excerpts of the following speech were presented at the International Hall of Fame Award, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, September 12, 2005.]

This is indeed a day to remember. I left Fort Leavenworth many years ago, but I swear it feels like it was only yesterday. But before anything else, please accept, on behalf of my government and all Indonesians, our deepest condolences and sympathies to the victims of Hurricane Katrina. It may offer little comfort to those who lost their homes, their livelihoods, their loved ones, to be reminded of a recent instance of nature's wrath.

The people of Aceh suffered gravely when nature unleashed the tsunami on December 26, 2004, just the day after Christmas, and the road to recovery is long and difficult. But if such a catastrophe could bring any good, it is that it brought communities together across Indonesia and indeed the world. We reach out to each other in times of trouble, and in the case of Aceh, that sense of unity has brought a world of good. The government of Indonesia and the secessionist rebels of Aceh have made peace now, after decades of fighting, for the sake of rebuilding the province. Hurricane Katrina may too harbor blessings not yet seen.

In today's world, when the meaning of security is broadened beyond traditional definition, from war and military conflict to terrorism and trans-national crimes to absolutely poverty and deadly communicable diseases to degradation of environment, the roles and task of military organization also varies. …

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