VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Indonesian Ministry of Tourism has invited nine Travel Agents/Tour Operators of Malaysia and one companion from the representative of VITO (Visit Indonesia Tourism Officer) in Malaysia to make a familiarization trip to Banyuwangi in East Java, and Bali.

"The Fam Trip was held on June 23-29, 2019 in order to support the Bali & Beyond Travel Fair (BBTF) Event in 2019," said head of subdivision of area IV / A (Malaysia Peninsula) of the ministry's regional II, Nurdiansyah when contacted from Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.

In addition to supporting by bringing nine Malaysian buyers to attend BBTF 2019, this Fam Trip also aims to increase sales of Banyuwangi and Bali tour packages for the Malaysian market while increasing awareness of those destinations.

"Fam Trip is also an effort of the Ministry of Tourism to maintain the continuity of the Kuala Lumpur - Banyuwangi international direct flight route by Citilink (a subsidiary to the Indonesian flag carrier Garuda Indonesia), which has been opened since December 19, 2018," he said.

He said in Fam Trip the participants were invited to get to know interesting tourist and culinary objects and try some accommodation options at the destination.

A number of Banyuwangi destinations visited are De Djawatan, Aamdani Restaurant, Luminor Hotel, Ijen Crater, Vienna Pondok Restaurant, Osing Tourism Village, Osing Deles Souvenir Center and Ikan Bakar Pesona Restaurant

While the Bali destinations visited are Ketapang-Gilimanuk Harbor, Kurnia Village Restaurant, Tanah Lot Temple, Surya Mandala Cultural Park, Warung Subak Pekendungan, Infinity8 Hotel Nusa Dua.

Pandawa Beach, Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park, New Beranda Resto and Bali Nusa Dua Convention Center are the visited locations of BBTF, in addition to Kuta Plaza Restaurant and Kenja (farewell cocktail party), Bebek Bengil Restaurant, Souvenir Center "The Basket" and Bali Surf Outlet

"Overall, the implementation of the Fam Trip activities for BBTF 2019 Support for TA / TO Malaysia went well and smoothly. The participants also said they were happy because they had been introduced to a new destination, namely Banyuwangi with the Ijen crater and its blue fire," he said.

He said the introduction and promotion of tourist destinations in Banyuwangi for the Malaysian market is very important as an alternative tourist destination mostly to Jakarta, Batam, Bali, Medan, Bandung and others. (ant)

Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti encourages the National Police (Polri) officers to conduct a comprehensive investigation against the perpetrators of various illegal activities in Indonesia's seas to support national sovereignty.

In a press release  received in Jakarta on Sunday, Susi said that the police had a very important role to play in maintaining Indonesia's sovereignty.

She raised the issue while delivering a public lecture at Polri's High Staff and Command School (Sespimti) in Jakarta, on Friday (June 28).

On that occasion, the minister emphasized the important role of the police to take action against foreign fishing boat owners who carry out illegal activities in Indonesian waters.

This reflects on her experience in handling the case of a large fish carrier loaded with 3,000 tons of fish in Sabang, Aceh Province, as well as other vessels such as MV Viking and STS 50 some time ago.

Minister Susi said that even though she managed to capture those vessels and confiscate a cargo of fish worth Rp20billion in it, real ship owners and masterminds had not been dragged by law enforcers.

She revealed that the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) has limitations in handling similar cases, because it is only able to punish field actors.

Therefore, she said, the police are expected to be able to fill the role in taking action against the ship owners who are perpetrators of illegal activities in the sea and other masterminds of those acts of crime.

In overcoming the issue,  education in police institutions must be improved to enable the police investigators to handle various crime cases in the sea.

"(One of the main requirements in) developed countries, modern countries, and prosperous countries is the law enforcement which strives to go in a direction with integrity," she noted.

Conducting a full and comprehensive investigation against the perpetrators of crimes in the sea is very important to support growth in marine and fisheries sectors.

Therefore, the ministry continues carrying out policies in combating illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

"The keys to eradicating the IUU fishing are national policy and strong political support. We encourage countries to make strict policies, invest in increasing law enforcement capacity, and take stern law enforcement measures to close doors the occurrence of IUU fishing," the ministry's Research and HR Agency Head Sjarief Widjaja explained.

According to Sjarief, eradicating IUU fishing through various regional and international cooperation forums is important because the perpetrators are often cross-country.

In addition, he said, illegal fishing activities were also carried out by foreign ships with crews from various nationalities. (ant) 

Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi engaged in bilateral talks to discuss economic and maritime issues on the sidelines of the Group of Twenty (G20) Summit in Osaka, Japan, Saturday.

"I believe the ASEAN and India can deepen Indo-Pacific cooperation," Jokowi remarked during the meeting held at INTEX in Osaka.

The Indonesian leader lauded India for supporting the ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific adopted by ASEAN leaders during their 34th summit held in Bangkok, Thailand, on June 22, 2019. Indo-Pacific is a concept of cooperation among several nations located in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific. The cooperation focuses on the principles of transparency and respect for the international law.

Jokowi encouraged both nations to make all-out efforts to achieve the bilateral trade target of US$50 billion in 2025. He highlighted the need for both nations to remove tariff and non-tariff barriers to realize the target.

He specifically called on Modi to pay attention to the new import tariffs applied on the export of palm oil from Indonesia since early January 2019.

"We need to encourage our trade ministers to go ahead with the discussion to achieve a win-win solution, including a proposal for trade-off between palm oil and other commodities," the president noted in a press statement of the Presidential Secretariat's deputy for protocol, press, and media, Bey Machmudin.

In the maritime field, the president highlighted the significance of increasing business interactions within the framework of maritime cooperation between both nations. Interactions could be initiated between businessmen of Aceh in Indonesia and those of Andaman-Nicobar in India.

Hence, he called on India to partake in the development of infrastructure connectivity in Sabang, Indonesia.

In the meantime, Modi warmly welcomed trade and investment cooperation between Andaman-Nicobar and Aceh. The cooperation is viewed as being practical in nature and will benefit both nations.

During the meeting, Jokowi was accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Minister/State Secretary Pratikno, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani, Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita, Industry Minister Airlangga Hartarto, Presidential Special Staff Adita Irawan, and Indonesian Ambassador to Japan Arifin Tasrif. (ant) 

Indonesian Minister of Trade Enggartiasto Lukita with Indonesian Minister of Industry Airlangga Hartarto held a bilateral meeting with the Minister of Economy, Trade and Japanese Industry Hiroshige Seko. The meeting discussed the completion of the General Review of the Indonesian Economic Partnership Agreement (GR-IJEPA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan, on Thursday (9/27).

"Me and Minister Seko have met three times this month. This is because Indonesia and Japan are important partners with various shared agendas in the field of trade, including bilateral issues GR-IJEPA and RCEP, "said the Minister of Trade. 

The Minister of Trade emphasized that Indonesia could benefit economically from GR-IJEPA and RCEP through the use of more open access to goods and services markets and the entry of investment and cooperation in increasing capacity and capacity.

"Seeing the magnitude of this potential, at the moment both parties are trying with every effort to reach a final agreement," he continued.
At this meeting, the two Ministers agreed to work hard so that RCEP multiregional negotiations could be completed before the end of 2019. "Me and Minister Seko agreed that the completion of RCEP was very important and would provide encouragement to trade cooperation amid the trade tensions experienced by the world lately, "Said the Trade Minister.

The bilateral meeting also discussed sector issues, such as the implementation of the New Manufacturing Industry Development Center (New MIDEC) cooperation, the development of the automotive industry, and Indonesian policies related to Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV).

On this occasion the signing of the Framework Document on New MIDEC was carried out under the IJEPA framework between the Minister of Industry and Minister Seko. Framework Document on New MIDEC is a program that can support industrial 4.0 programs. This is due to its comprehensive coverage, which includes the automotive, electronic, textile and food and beverage sectors with cross-sectoral programs which include workmanship, printing, metal welding, SME development, export and import promotion, and green and industrial industries 4.0.

"Indonesia welcomes the signing of the New MIDEC cooperation framework initiated under the IJEPA. New MIDEC will be a program to increase sustainable industrial sector cooperation with Japan. This is in line with industrial policy 4.0 which is being initiated by the government. This cooperation is also a capital to grow together for the future of the two countries, "concluded the Trade Minister.

In addition to conducting bilateral meetings, the Minister of Trade Engaged in attending the CEO Roundtable meeting and one on one business meeting. The meeting was also attended by Maritime Coordinating Minister Luhut Binsar Panjaitan, Minister of Industry, and Head of the Investment Coordinating Board Tom Lembong. In addition, 21 leaders of Japanese companies are investing in Indonesia.

GR-IJEPA Overview
IJEPA is the first bilateral trade agreement owned by Indonesia. This agreement was signed on August 20, 2007 in Jakarta and became effective on July 1, 2008. Based on mandate of article 151 of the IJEPA Agreement, Indonesia and Japan can conduct a review of the implementation and operationalization of the agreement in the fifth year since it was implemented. GR-IJEPA is a momentum to renegotiate the expansion of market access between the two countries, and increase economic cooperation.

The initial meeting (preliminary meeting) of the GR-IJEPA discussion was held in Jakarta on September 12, 2014 and the last (11th) meeting was held on March 26-29 2019 in Tokyo, Japan. At the last meeting, the two countries agreed to announce the completion of the GRIJEPA by the two ministers in the trade sector on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in June 2019 in Osaka, Japan.

Japan is the second largest export destination for Indonesia and ranks third as Indonesia's main import origin country. According to Central Statistics Agency data, in 2018, Indonesia-Japan trade reached USD 37.40 billion with a surplus for Indonesia amounting to USD 1.50 billion. During this period, Indonesia's exports to Japan amounted to USD 19.47 billion. Indonesia's mainstay export commodities to Japan are coal, ore and copper concentrates, precious metal waste and pieces, natural rubber, and insulated wire.

While Indonesia's imports from Japan were recorded at USD 17.97 billion. Import commodities include motor vehicle parts and accessories, semi-finished vehicles, printing machines, cars and other vehicles, and iron platinum rolls. (kemendag)