VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

New Zealand Ambassador-designate to Indonesia Dr Jonathan Austin expressed his nation's gratitude for the support lent by the Indonesian government and people after terrorist attacks at a mosque and an Islamic Center in Christchurch last March.

"Indonesia's support is akin to telling New Zealand that we are stronger than the tragedy itself, and we really laud it," Austin stated at an interview at the "International Corner" of Antara News Agency here on Thursday.

The ambassador-designate also praised the Indonesian government for its support to the "Christchurch Call," an initiative from New Zealand to encourage social media platforms to take greater accountability in combating violent extremist content by curbing its distribution online.

Austin noted that Indonesia was standing alongside New Zealand to highlight the crucial role of social media in preventing terrorism and is a matter of serious concern for its devastating effects akin to the incidents at Al Noor Mosque and an Islamic Center in Christchurch.

"When a terrorist, not from New Zealand, chose to come to New Zealand and kill people, hurt our people... We are very-very shocked about that. Hence, what we are really concerned is how to curb this content to be distributed online, so that nobody will get influenced by it," he stated.

"The Indonesian government's support also showed that the G-to-G (government-to-government) relations between New Zealand and Indonesia are close and that we work together on the global stage," Austin affirmed.

New Zealand's diplomat, who had been staying in Jakarta for about 20 years, also offered his condolences to the family of an Indonesian national, who died in the attack in which two others were injured.

"We have around six thousand Indonesians in New Zealand, and sadly, some of them have become victims. All this time, we live in harmony, and such action has tried to divide us, but at the end of the day, we are all human, and humanity should rank higher than religiosity, political choices, race, etc," he emphasized.

During his visit to the Antara newsroom, Austin also discussed his role as the new ambassador to Indonesia during his meeting with Antara Editor in Chief Akhmad Munir and Head of International Desk Gusti Cahya Aryani.

Austin admitted to being eager to hand over his credential letter to President Joko Widodo in early August since he arrived in Jakarta three months ago.

"After that, the first thing I would do is to celebrate. Hence, I will be going out to have a really good satay or rendang to celebrate that 'Oh, now I am officially the ambassador to Indonesia,'" he stated humorously, while adding that he might gain weight quickly during his service in Indonesia for his love for Indonesian food, including spicy dishes (ANTARA)

Ten finalists from 10 ASEAN countries entered the final round of the ASEAN+3 Song Contest, Saturday night (7/27/2019), at the Quang Ninh Exhibition and Planning Center, Ha Long, Vietnam.  One of the ten finalists is Olivia Christina from Indonesia.  The Finalists of the 2019 ASEAN+3 Song Contest are to perform at the final round tonight, Sunday (07/28/2019).  Of the ten finalists, 3 winners will be chosen as the winners.  The Asian+3 Contest 2019 held by the Voice of Vietnam for the second time was attended by 22 contestants consisting of singers and artists from 10 ASEAN countries and 4 invitations from China, the Republic of Korea and Japan.  The Pop music contest which is intended for young professional singers ages between 18-35 years ofvaims to strengthen the understanding among the ASEAN member countris and foster the development of young talents in the music in the ASEAN community.  (ANI)

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is planning to invest in a container port and industrial zone in Gresik, East Java Province.

"The preparations are going on. Hopefully, the construction will begin in 2021 at the latest. I will ask them to start earlier," Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said at the Bogor Presidential Palace in West Java, Wednesday. The UAE’s investment in the infrastructure projects in Indonesia will be worth US$1.2 billion.

The investment sharing pattern between Indonesia's private sector and the UAE will be 51:49.

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and the visiting Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, earlier witnessed the exchange of agreement documents between the businessmen of both countries.

The agreements included a Memorandum of Understanding between DP World represented by CEO Sultan bin Sulayem and Maspion represented by CEO Alim Markus.

The container port to be constructed at the Maspion industrial zone in Gresik is expected to have a capacity of three million TEUs. The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi arrived in Indonesia Wednesday where he was welcomed by President Jokowi.

Indonesia and the UAE are on the same page in terms of increasing bilateral cooperation in 12 areas, particularly in the economic sector.

"From the substance of (issues) discussed, the first is how the two countries can enhance economic cooperation. Hence, the discussion of economic issues is very dominant," Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi stated at the Bogor Presidential Palace Wednesday.

Under the efforts to boost cooperation, both nations inked Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) for cooperation in nine out of the 12 areas.

Foreign Minister Marsudi signed two MoUs on the protection of bilateral investment and the joint committee for consular affairs with UAE Home Affairs Minister Sultan bin Ahmad Sultan Al Jaber.

In the defense sector, Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Al Jaber.

In the Maritime and Fishery sector, Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Susi Pudjiastuti signed an MoU with Al Jaber.

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati signed an MoU on the avoidance of double taxation with Al Jaber, while an MoU on customs and excise duties was inked with Minister of Economy Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri.

Tourism Minister Arief Yahya inked an MoU with Al Mansouri with regard to the sector.