VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A screenshot of President Joko Widodo addressing the second Muslim Economic Congress in Jakarta on Friday (December 10, 2021). (ANTARA/Indra Arief) - 

President Joko Widodo has said he is optimistic about the prospects of the Indonesian sharia economy.

“Our sharia economy, which was ranked ninth in 2014, has grown to the fourth largest in the world in 2020-2021,” he noted while opening the second Muslim Economic Congress in Jakarta on Friday.

More than 1,300 participants joined the opening ceremony of the congress, with 250 participating in person and 1,250 others online. Deputy chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), Anwar Abbas, also attended the opening ceremony.

“According to my forecast, Insya Allah (God Willing), in the next three to four years, it will be the second or largest (in the world) if it grows as we look at it now,” he said. 

The President said he is optimistic about the Indonesian sharia economy increasingly expanding in the next six to seven years thanks to the nation's large Muslim population.

“With the world’s largest Muslim population reaching 87 percent or 207 million of the total population, we have committed ourselves to becoming a hub for sharia economy in 2024, and we will try hard to achieve it,” he remarked.

In addition to the sharia financial industry, the President also touched upon halal industry development.

“We will encourage the development of the sharia financial sector, the development of the sharia social financial sector, and the development of sharia entrepreneurship since we are a country with the largest Muslim population in the world,” he said.

In this regard, Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI) will serve not only large customers but also small customers, he added.

“The large, the small, the medium to become large, BSI will serve all of them. BSI is now one of the eight large banks with stronger capital. We hope the large banks will serve the halal industry, halal tourism, and halal products which have a very large market share,” Widodo said.

Moreover, since December 1, 2021, Indonesia has assumed the Presidency of the G20, he added.

“This means that we are the chair of large countries, developed countries, which are in the top twenty list (in terms) of gross domestic product (GDP). We are now ranked 16th. But as Buya has stated, Insya Allah (God willing), we will be one of the four largest (economies), according to the calculations of McKinsey, the World Bank, and IMF,” he said.

Though Indonesia is predicted to become the world’s fourth-largest economy, the challenge will not be easy, he added.

“The challenge will not be easy. There are some conditions to achieve it since our per capita income in 2040-2045 must be US$23 thousand to US$27 thousand. That is a huge figure,” he remarked//ANT

Listyo Sigit Prabowo making a speech after his inauguration as the new chairperson of ISSI on Saturday (December 11, 2021). (ANTARA/Shofi Ayudiana) - 

The general chairperson of the Indonesian National Sports Committee (KONI), Marciano Norman, officially inaugurated National Police (Kapolri) chief Listyo Sigit Prabowo as the new general chairperson of the Indonesian Cycling Federation (ISSI) here on Saturday.

Prabowo was elected by acclamation as the general chairperson of ISSI for the 2021-2025 period in place of Raja Sapta Oktohari at the National Extraordinary Congress (Munaslub) in Jakarta last April.

Norman said he is optimistic that the new ISSI chairperson would have a positive impact and help improve Indonesia’s cycling athletes’ achievements globally.

“ISSI should be grateful because the general chairman is one of Indonesia's best sons. He can increase the synergy between inter-provincial administrators since his staff is spread all over Indonesia and can provide support for cycling sports," the KONI chairperson said in his speech after the inauguration.

He also asked the new management of ISSI to continue efforts to develop tourism-based cycling sport or sports tourism, such as by organizing Tour de Singkarak and Tour de Indonesia events.

Meanwhile, Prabowo affirmed that he is ready to continue to support Indonesia's cycling sport and help the country's athletes prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics qualification.

He said he will also continue ISSI’s six strategic programs, namely the improvement of the quality of trainers, commissioners, and judges, the quality of events on a national and international scale, the development of cycling sports infrastructure and venues, and improvement of organizational governance.

"I will continue the achievements that have been achieved previously, and, of course, will also improve (the achievements)," the new ISSI chairperson added.

"We will also make (cycling) tracks in urban areas in order to support the improvement of the community's sports culture," he said//ANT

Illustration—A health worker vaccinates a child. (ANTARA/HO) - 

The Ministry of Health will commence vaccinations for children aged 6 to 11 years in Java and Bali islands from December 24, 2021, an official has said.

“We will start from Java-Bali and probably some additional districts outside Java and Bali,” spokesperson for COVID-19 vaccinations for the Ministry of Health, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, confirmed in Jakarta on Saturday.

As instructed by the Minister of Home Affairs, vaccinations for children in the 6–11 age group can commence once a region has reached 70-percent first dose vaccination coverage and 60-percent elderly vaccination coverage, she said.

Vaccinations for children would be administered in schools, health facilities, or vaccination centers, Tarmizi informed.

Earlier, during a working visit to Boyolali, Central Java, on Friday (December 10, 2021), deputy health minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono had revealed that the government has allocated around 60 million vaccine doses for children in the 6–11 age group across the country.

“Vaccinations for children will commence on December 24, 2021. We will prioritize vaccinations for children. We have allocated around 58–60 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine that are suitable for children aged 6–11,” he said.

The National Agency of Drug and Food Control (BPOM) had earlier given permission for the emergency use of the Sinovac vaccine for children aged 6–11.

In a bid to boost immunity against COVID-19, the Indonesian government launched a nationwide vaccination program on January 13, 2021. President Joko Widodo was the first vaccine recipient under the program.

According to data provided by the Health Ministry, as of December 11, 2021, nearly 146,270,504 citizens have received their first COVID-19 shot, while 102,759,772 have been fully vaccinated against the virus//ANT

Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) Executive Director Damar Juniarto. (ANTARA/Sanya Dinda) - 

Victims of online gender-based violence (GBV) can experience psychological and material losses, Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) Executive Director Damar Juniarto stated.

"There are victims, who have to pay tens of millions, so that their personal photos are not distributed. Online gender-based violence is a real form of violence that can harm the victim psychologically and materially," Juniarto noted in an event, Friday.

Online GBV has become the most reported among cases of violence to the Jakarta chapter of legal aid society for women (LBH Apik) from November 1, 2020, to October 30, 2021, with the case count totaling 489.

However, out of the total, only 25 cases were reported to the police, and merely two cases were processed in court.

"The not-yet effective protection from online gender-based violence cannot be separated from the fact that violence against women is a legal issue that is most often neglected," he emphasized.

To this end, online GBV should be viewed to be as dangerous as other types of gender-based violence.

If online GBV persists, Juniarto believes that over time, it would potentially fuel the assumption that women should desist from expressing themselves on social media.

"It is the same as locking women in a home and not allowing them to socialize because we are afraid that they will be physically abused. Hence, we have to admit that Indonesia is in an emergency situation in terms of online gender-based violence," he remarked.

Moreover, Juniarto assessed that collective efforts at the international level are deemed necessary to ensure that social media corporations and governments partake in eliminating online GBV. In addition, the legal umbrella that protects victims, such as the passage of the sexual violence prevention bill (RUU TPKS), should be ratified immediately.

"The government needs to include the eradication of online GBV in the efforts to eliminate violence against women,” he stressed//ANT