VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

On the occasion of National Batik Day that took place in Canberra October 2, the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra held a seminar entitled ‘Sustainability of Batik as Indonesia's heritage for the world: Opportunities and Challenges’ as reported by Antara in Jakarta, Thursday (7/10). In the seminar, Indonesian Ambassador to Australia, Kristiarto S Legowo explained that Batik has two main meanings for the people of Indonesia. First, Batik is a cultural heritage from Indonesian ancestors, which has been passed down from generation to generation, with different models in each region and it containing unique values in each community. Second, Batik is a part of the Indonesian industry and is a source of livelihood or work for the community.

Ambassador Kristiarto also said that the demand for Batik has increased from year to year, not only in the domestic market but also in the international arena. Even Batik has entered the high fashion industry. He mentioned two international design houses, Dior and Louis Vuitton, who had integrated Batik motifs into their designs. According to Ambassador Kristiarto, the increasing interest and demand has encouraged the Batik industries to continue to develop in order to meet increasingly higher standards.

Another speaker at the seminar, Yan Sunarya from the Bandung Institute of Technology said that Batik is a collection of knowledge and diversity of beauty. In addition, Batik is also a national identity which later becomes a symbol to respect humans and their cultural achievements. He highlighted Sundanese Batik which is said to have a specific and unique character. According to his research related to Sundanese Batik, since the 16th century, the Sunda region has been familiar with Batik production.

Meanwhile, Speaker Maria Wornska Friend from James Cook University highlighted Javanese Batik in particular. According to Maria, Javanese Batik has made a huge contribution to the world since centuries ago. Its influence even reached India, Africa, Europe and even Australia. The woman, who has conducted research on Javanese Batik for more than 30 years, gave an example of the “Parang Rusak” motif from Central Java, which has inspired the “Fan” motif produced by Vlisco in the Netherlands.

Through the seminar, the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra hopes that people's love for Indonesian Batik will be even greater and there will be enthusiasm to promote Batik as a part of international fashion trends.

It’s good news for lovers of contemporary Indonesian art exhibitions. Starting October 6 until November 14, 2021, the XVI Biennale Jogja presents the theme ‘Indonesia with Oceania’. According to Director of the Biennale Jogja Foundation, Alia Swastika, Oceania is chosen because Oceania is an identity contestation space that attracts communities who live together to witness historical shifts and then rewrite their own history in the vortex of local politics, (post) colonialism and global relations. The XVI Biennale Jogja is expected to be a space for dialogue between artists and intellectuals from Indonesia and artists and intellectuals from Oceania. Both can learn from each other's experiences as ex-colonized societies whose existence has been defined for too long by the power of Western knowledge.

At the entire series of exhibitions and programs, the Jogja Biennale is held in four locations. Alia Swastika in a virtual press conference for the XVI Biennale Jogja 2021 said that this year's Biennale Jogja was special, as it marks a decade of the Biennale Jogja, the Equator series, which began in 2011. Thereby, an archive exhibition is also held and itt re-presents fragments of artifacts, and notes on the growth of the Yogyakarta Biennale Foundation in the arts ecosystem in Yogyakarta and in the global south. Interestingly, the works of artists from India to Brazil are presented virtually through the Minecraft game. This shows how this event responds to the relationship between art, knowledge, and digital technology as a part of historical speculation. With the ovid-19 pandemic condition that still limits crowds, exhibitions and most programs can be watched through the online portal https://biennalejogja.org/2021 and the social media accounts of Biennale Jogja.

Biennale Jogja is one of the main references in reviewing the development of Indonesian art. The history of art activities can be traced since its first implementation in Yogyakarta in 1988. For more than two decades, this series of exhibitions has had an impact on the emergence of works, artist figures and discourses that characterize the development of contemporary art in Indonesia and Yogyakarta in particular. Biennale Jogja is organized by the Biennale Jogja Foundation established on August 23, 2010. Its mission is to initiate and facilitate various efforts to obtain a strategic concept of urban planning based on arts and culture, and  refine the cultural blueprint of the future city as a fair and democratic shared living space.

The Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria along with the Indonesian Trade and Promotion Center (ITPC) Johannesburg held a meeting with business representatives from the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa to identify a lot of  business opportunities in the Province. The Indonesian Embassy Pretoria in its Information on Thursday (7/10) stated that the business meeting for stakeholders held recently  was attended by Indonesian Ambassador to South Africa, Salman Al Farisi.  Ambassador Salman assesses that the meeting with business activists from Mpumalanga, South Africa is very helpful in identifying lots of  business opportunities that can be realized immediately.

Ambassador Salman Al Farisi also assessed that there are many interesting opportunities that can be followed up  both for trade, investment and capacity building. Even, some projects are for work not only  in South Africa, but also in several neighboring countries of South African, such as Botswana, Namibia , Mozambique and Malawi . The meeting with the Mpumalanga businesspeople was also attended by Director of the ITPC Johannesburg, Anggun Paramita Mahdi and Deputy Director of the ITPC Johannesburg, Jhanner Jhonatan.

While the business delegates from Mpumalanga province were led by Mike Masina from the JJ Engineering and Fabrication Center company.  Mike Masina is a former mayor of Middleburg. It is a city in the province of Mpumalanga. The meeting  has succeeded in identifying a number of businesses, investments and other collaborations, such as procurement of tires for public transportation, procurement of telecommunications equipment, such as fiber optics and cooperation in telecommunication infrastructure development.

Moreover, the Indonesian Embassy also obtained the opportunity to provide capacity building assistance for the young generation of South Africa, particularly in the field of information technology and telecommunications as well as economic empowerment through Micro Small and Medium Enterprises.  Ambassador Salman further stated that the Indonesian Embassy in Pretoria and ITPC Johannesburg will try to materialize the opportunities sooner.

The Chinese government's efforts to realize the One China Policy are still hampered by the problem of Taiwan. The western countries stance behind Taiwan is indeed a challenge for Beijing.

Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-Wen recently stressed that she would not submit to and become part of mainland China. This statement will not only strain relations with China, but may also encourage the western countries behind Taiwan to increase their support.

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-Wen in her October 10, 2021 speech, stressed that she would defend sovereignty and democracy in her territory. The first female president since 1996i stressed that there was no turning back to safeguard Taiwan's sovereignty.

Tsai Ing-Wen's assertion, delivered in a speech at the commemoration of Taiwan's National Day, came after Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to realize China's peaceful reunification. Ironically, the promise of peaceful reunification was revealed during a fairly large and provocative military exercise, by flying a number of fighter jets. There was even a practice landing on the beach not far from the island of Taiwan.

Along with the tension, it was reported that the commander of the Taiwan army, Hsu Yen-pu, had visited the United States. Meanwhile, several European countries have also shown their support for Taiwan, both in the form of political rhetoric and displays of war power.

Regarding the escalation of tension in Taiwan-China relations and the attention of foreign countries towards Taiwan, it can actually be seen from the geographical position of the country. The island of Taiwan, located not far from mainland China, makes it a strategic point in terms of Indo-Pacific geopolitics. For China, reunification is ideal because by unifying Taiwan, Beijing will have a strategic point in the Pacific for its defense. As for the United States, as well as Japan, the existence and independence of Taiwan is important, related to the security and geopolitical strategy of the Pacific region.