VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - The Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) raised the ASEAN Five-Point Consensus at the 44th General Session of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in Jakarta on August 7-9, to end the conflict in Myanmar.

Indonesian House Speaker Puan Maharani as chairman of the session, stated that Indonesia invited ASEAN countries' parliaments to strive for the five points of consensus that had been agreed upon to be implemented by the Myanmar government.

"Indonesia's position is clear that we want peace in Myanmar. We encourage the government to be able to jointly encourage Myanmar to agree on and implement the five points of consensus of the agreement that has been mutually agreed upon," Maharani remarked in Jakarta on Sunday.

The House speaker also echoed Indonesia's hopes that the ASEAN countries attending the 44th AIPA General Assembly would also encourage Myanmar to implement the five-point consensus to end conflicts in their country.

"We hope that all of the ASEAN countries that are present at this opportunity, the nine chairpersons of the parliaments, can encourage Myanmar to immediately resolve the problems peacefully in accordance with the ASEAN agreement," she affirmed.

The Five ASEAN Consensus Points on Myanmar were agreed upon by ASEAN member countries on April 24, 2021, or less than two months after the Myanmar military junta took over the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, 2021.

The consensus urged the Myanmar government to allow the delivery and distribution of humanitarian aid from ASEAN countries, to immediately stop all forms of violence, to hold dialogues that involved all parties, to appoint special envoys for negotiations, and to allow ASEAN special envoys to visit Myanmar to meet with interested parties in conflict.

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), in its report referring to the results of interviews and monitoring from February 1, 2022, to January 31, 2023, showed that the death toll reached more than 2,900 people, and 17,572 citizens were arrested and detained by the military junta.

Hence, Maharani stated that peace in Myanmar is one of the priority agendas of the 44th AIPA General Assembly.

"Parliament, through its network at the regional and international levels, has a strategic role in taking part in efforts to find solutions in the Myanmar conflict," she remarked.

She noted that efforts to create peace in Myanmar are also in line with this year's AIPA theme, namely Responsive Parliaments for a Stable and Prosperous ASEAN.

The 44th AIPA General Assembly takes place in Jakarta on August 7-9 and will be attended by parliamentary chairpersons from nine ASEAN member countries, namely Indonesia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Some 18 observers and guest countries, as well as representatives from nine international organizations will also attend the General Assembly. A total of 568 delegates are attending the General Assembly. (antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) calls for that ASEAN member countries, with a high religious spirit, should be able to become the anchor of world peace.

He made the statement at the 2023 ASEAN Intercultural and Interreligious Dialogue Forum (ASEAN IIDC) that was initiated by the Nahdlatul Ulama Executive Board (PBNU) along with the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jakarta on Monday.

"ASEAN must become the anchor of world peace. I am sure that the ASEAN community has an increasing religious spirit," Jokowi noted.

He emphasized the need for ASEAN to become a peace anchor due to global turbulence. According to the 2023 Global Peace Index, conflicts involve 91 countries, with a death toll of 238 thousand and economic losses of US$17.5 trillion.

However, the world community is becoming less religious. The 2023 IPSOS Global Religion survey showed 29 percent agnostics and atheists out of 19,731 people from 26 countries.

"According to data from the EU Research Center, the number of physical violence incidents is also increasing," Jokowi pointed out.

He believes that the 2023 IIDC participants have a commitment to support ASEAN in becoming an example of tolerance and unity, as well as an anchor for world peace.

"ASEAN countries, including Indonesia, have succeeded in maintaining a strong tradition of tolerance in the midst of cultural and religious diversity. Indonesia is also able to maintain harmony and manage the diversity of ethnicity, culture, religion, and belief," he remarked.

Jokowi also expected the ASEAN community to become a catalyst for world peace, as well as a caring and sharing community that is not only an epicenter of growth but also an epicenter of harmony that maintains regional stability and world peace.

"Therefore, I warmly welcome the constructive role of religious and cultural leaders in ASEAN, including through this intercultural dialogue and interreligious conference," he affirmed.

He expressed hope that this forum would bring a wider mutual understanding and can become a solid foundation for building ASEAN as a center of growth and a center for world harmony.

Meanwhile, Indonesia's largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Chairman, Yahya Cholil Staquf, stated that this event was a continuation of the Forum of Twenty (R20) held last year.

He said that the ASEAN and Indo-Pacific communities have, in fact, inherited a common civilization that has become a shared cultural heritage, with tolerance and harmony as the main characteristics.

Hence, his side initiated the 2023 IIDC Forum to start consolidating major civilizational constituencies that can encourage the growth of tolerance and peace that are expected to inspire international dynamics as a whole.

"During the ASEAN Summit, Indonesia proposed ASEAN as the epicenter of growth as a theme, so we also want to contribute with ideas to support the theme by making ASEAN as the epicenter of peace, tolerance, and harmony," he affirmed.

The event was attended by 200 participants, including 11 domestic speakers, 15 foreign speakers, and 27 delegates from ASEAN countries and invited countries, such as the United States, China, India, and Japan. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy (Kemenparekraf) is promoting the country's tourist destinations in an exhibition called Expo Indonesia en Mexico 2023.

Through the exhibition, the ministry is facilitating national tourism sector players to conduct business-matching activities, meet with Mexican travel agents, and promote tour packages to Indonesia's tourist destinations, especially its five super priority tourism destinations (DPSPs).

"Kemenparekraf is also supporting an art team comprising Indonesian diaspora in the American region to perform at the event," Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno stated in a press release received in Jakarta on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the ministry's Deputy of Marketing Ni Made Ayu Marthini said that the government is looking to optimize the exhibition to spotlight Wonderful Indonesia, the country's national tourism brand, in the hopes of reaffirming it as a top-of-mind brand.

"To that end, we disseminate information to the public on the development of tourist destinations in Indonesia as well as make adjustments to the current trends and needs of tourists," she pointed out.

She then highlighted data provided by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) in 2022, stating that the American region constitutes a potential market for Indonesia's tourism industry, with the average spending of tourists from the region recorded at US$2,248 per visit.

Moreover, on average, American tourists stay in Indonesia for 17 nights during their visits.

Furthermore, she noted that Mexican tourists are fond of participating in natural adventurous activities, such as visiting mountains and craters in the Java and Bali islands and seeing orangutans on Kalimantan Island.

The Expo Indonesia en Mexico 2023, themed "Reconnecting and Showcasing Wonderful Indonesia in the American Market, is being held in Centro de Conveciones, Mexico, on August 3-6, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Mexico.

The government is projecting the event to attract 10,000 visitors by exhibiting trade and investment opportunities.

To organize the exhibition, Kemenparekraf is collaborating with the Indonesian Embassy in Mexico City, the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center in Mexico City, the Ministry of Trade, and the Ministry of Investment/Indonesian Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM). (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - The Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration Ministry said that the Village Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) launched in 2021 aim to realize villages that are free from poverty and hunger.

"Through these Village SDGs, we hope that the economy will grow evenly, villages will care about health, the environment, education, accommodate women, expand networking, and be culturally resilient," the ministry's Director for Development of Village Facilities and Infrastructures, Nursaidi, stated here on Sunday.

At the national youth conference with the theme "Cultural Collaboration in the Expedition for Villages in Hidden Paradise", Nursaidi said the concepts of Village SDGs can be implemented through programs and activities. For instance, he said, the development of tourism villages, customary villages, inclusive villages, women-friendly and child-caring villages, and so on

In order to realize the village SDGs, the government has transferred the village fund and provided guidelines for the use of the budget.

The village fund is based on Ministerial Regulation No. 8 of 2022 concerning the priorities for using the village fund in 2023.

The regulation stipulates that village fund utilization aims to accelerate the achievement of Village SDGs through national economic recovery programs.

Nursaidi pointed out that the village fund can be used to mitigate and handle natural and non-natural disasters.

He emphasized that village fund utilization must be based on the village's authority.

Furthermore, the village fund can also be used for establishing, developing, and increasing the capacity of village-owned enterprises (BUMDes) and collective BUMDes, as well as tourism villages and productive economic businesses.

Nursaidi said that there are many villages whose budgets are lacking to develop tourism villages.

Therefore, he said, the ministry has facilitated proposals from regions on the development of tourism objects to support the establishment of sustainable tourism villages. (Antaranews)