VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The main requirement for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to play a central role in the global arena is stable regional security, Governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas) Andi Widjajanto has said.

"There are two important issues of regional stability, namely the problem of the political crisis in Myanmar and the South China Sea. On the one hand, this challenge shows homework, so a breakthrough must be sought, and Indonesia, as the chair of ASEAN, has a central role," he observed in a press release on "The Latest ASEAN in the Global Stage” discussion in Jakarta on Monday.

According to Widjajanto, as the leader of ASEAN, Indonesia could encourage the resolution of these two problems because there are many diplomatic channels in ASEAN that encourage cooperation rather than create conflict.

"The Myanmar issue, for example, will be based on five points of consensus, one of which is prioritizing inclusive dialogue with all parties to encourage a special envoy or special envoy," he said.

According to director general for ASEAN cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sidharto R. Suryodipuro, the Myanmar political crisis is indeed an important topic because it concerns regional stability and the development of the regional community.

"Indonesia has conveyed its plan and the ministers agreed on the plan that Indonesia will carry out in the Myanmar issue, while regarding the South China Sea, it is necessary to carry out intensive negotiations with China to achieve progress in terms of regional security," he informed.

ASEAN has agreed to support Indonesia's efforts in carrying out a consensus on ending violence, distributing aid, approaching all parties, and having dialogue in an inclusive political process.

Head of the Department of Economics of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Fajar Hirawan agreed that the stability of Southeast Asia is important for advancing the growth and prosperity of the region.

"In everywhere, economic stability will be influenced by politics and security. I think stability in the region should be maintained, in this case, (in) Myanmar. When talking about the problems of ASEAN member countries, it means that everything must be seen. ASEAN was indeed founded as a forum to invite all to grow together, but if there is one who has stability issues, it will be a challenge in itself,” he said.

There are a number of sensitive issues in the economic field, while food security can be achieved by increasing cooperation, Sidharto said.

In the event of a crisis, ASEAN members can help each other in greater numbers.

"Apart from that, there are other sensitive issues such as energy, health, and financial transitions, where we already have an agreement on the digital economy framework and electric cars," said Sidharto.

Specifically for electric cars, because the market is regional, Indonesia is pushing for the creation of a regional ecosystem that has similar rules so that all manufacturers have a regional outlook.

"In this field, we have competitiveness as one of the engines of growth," Sidharto said. (Antaranews)

Vice President Ma'ruf Amin stated that some damaged tsunami detection devices, also called buoys, should be repaired without further ado.

"I think that those devices are important to be fixed since we live in a country that is prone to experience tsunami," he said in a press statement delivered after a public lecture at Maspardi Building, Surabaya Navy Academy (AAL) on Monday.

It was reported that the seven tsunami detection devices (Ina-Buoys) owned by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) installed at several tsunami-prone locations are no longer functional.

According to BRIN, those devices are no longer working since they are two years old and due to their operational costs that are relatively high.

Speaking in connection with the budget to address these matters, the vice president remarked that it should not be a problem, given that repairing these buoys can be done gradually.

This means that regardless of the case, tsunami detection devices should still exist and function well.

At the very least, these devices should be able to provide early sign or warning, he remarked.

According to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), it has been up to a year since these tsunami detection buoys had functioned.

These buoys are connected to seafloor sensors near Bengkulu, near Mount Krakatau, Sunda Strait, Pangandaran south sea, south of East Java, Bali south sea and Waingapu south sea in East Sumba.

Accompanying the vice president during this press conference were National Defense Force (TNI) Commander Admiral Yudo Margono, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Ali, Governor of AAL Rear Admiral Denih Hendrata, and Deputy Governor of East Java Elestianto Dardak.  (Antaranews)

Jakarta (voinews.id): Executive Head of the Financial Services Authority's (OJK's) Capital Market Supervisor Inarno Djajadi outlined various efforts to push the domestic capital market industry in 2023.

During the Financial Service Industry Annual Meeting (PTIJK) streamed on Monday, he explained that the OJK will conduct coordination with various ministries and institutions.

This step is taken as a follow up to the ratification of Law No. 4 of 2023 on Financial Sector Development and Strengthening (P2SK).

"Specifically, in the capital market field, to support the effectiveness of development, regulation, and monitoring," he explained.

The OJK will also coordinate with the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment as well as the Ministry of Environment and Forestry to prepare for carbon exchange in Indonesia, he noted

Subsequently, the OJK will conduct coordination with the Trade Ministry's Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency (Bappebti) in a bid to regulate and monitor the derivative financial instrument in the capital market.

Moreover, the OJK will collaborate with Bank Indonesia (BI) to regulate and monitor the money market and the collective utilization of financial market infrastructure.

This coordination will later be undertaken with other related ministries and institutions to regulate and monitor the market as well as to enforce the law, Djajadi stated.

Moreover, the OJK will optimize the adoption of technology as an effort to support business efficiency and sustainable finance development in Indonesia's capital market industry in 2023.

"Financial market is still shallow, fragmented, and not yet consolidated," he remarked.

Moreover, the OJK will strengthen the legal framework to support the effectiveness of law enforcement and investor protection.

This is carried out through management quality and market actor integrity strengthening as well as improvement of financial literacy.

He noted that these efforts have been described within Indonesia's capital market roadmap 2023-2027 that was unveiled on January 30, 2023, as a strategic program that refers to the five pillars of development.

The roadmap contains various strategic initiatives that support the implementation of the P2SK Law, including formulation of the law's derivative regulations this year.

One of the initiatives includes carbon exchange regulation issuance and infrastructure preparation, Djajadi remarked. (antaranews)

Jakarta (voinews.id): Indonesia's open water swim team collected four gold medals at the 1st SEA Open Water Swimming Championship in Putra Jaya, Malaysia, on February 2–4, 2023.

According to a written statement received from the Indonesian Swimming Association (PRSI) here on Monday, the gold medals were bagged by Aflah Fadlan Prawira, Adinda Larasati Dewi, Izzy Dwifaiva Hefrisyanthi, and the mixed relay team.

Prawira finished first in the men's 5-kilometer (km) event with a time of 55 minutes and 21.4 seconds. He was also named the best male swimmer at the event.

"What Prawira achieved is quite good. Apart from Prawira, there are also several swimmers who achieved good results and are in the young age category. They are being prepared for the 2025 SEA Games," the Indonesian open water swim team's Chef de Mission Liza Januar said.

Dewi struck gold in the women's 5km event with a time of 1 hour, 1 minute, and 13.7 seconds. At the same event, another Indonesian swimmer, Kathriana Mella Gustianjani, bagged the bronze medal with a time of 1 hour, 5 minutes, and 21.6 seconds.

Hefrisyanthi claimed her gold in the 5km event for the 18–19 age bracket with a time of 1 hour, 2 minutes, and 11.8 seconds. At the same event, Indonesia’s Aisha Jenar Laksitadevi, took the bronze with a time of 1 hour, 10 minutes, and 07.3 seconds.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s mixed relay team, consisting of Mochamad Dimas Permana Taufik, Dewi, Hefrisyanthi, and Prawira, clinched gold with a time of 1 hour, 13 minutes, and 00.8 seconds.

In addition, Indonesian swimmer Virgin Silvia Natan bagged bronze in the women's 10km event with a time of 2 hours, 17 minutes, and 17.4 seconds. (antaranews)