VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Indonesia has withdrawn its commitment to host the ANOC World Beach Games and the ANOC General Assembly in Bali in August 2023.

On Tuesday, the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) sent a letter to the international federations participating in the ANOC World Beach Games.

The letter stated that ANOC and Bali's Local Organizing Committee (LOC) had been holding weekly coordination meetings until last week, and at no point did the LOC indicate any major issues that would lead to such an outcome.

According to the letter seen by ANTARA, the Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI) said that the decision was taken because "the government has delayed its financial commitment, and there is no time to deliver the Games."

With the Games scheduled to take place in four weeks, the decision not to host them at such late notice would prevent ANOC from finding an alternative host. Therefore, there would be no option but to cancel this year's edition in Bali, as stated in the letter.

"ANOC is very disappointed by the KOI’s actions, which will deny athletes from 100 qualified NOCs the opportunity to fulfill their ambitions of competing at the Games," according to a statement released on its website.

The ANOC General Assembly in October 2021 approved Indonesia as the host of the 2023 ANOC World Beach Games, the second edition of the Games after Doha, Qatar, in 2019.

The 2023 ANOC World Beach Games were scheduled to be held from August 5 to 12, and the ANOC General Assembly from August 13 to 15. The tournament was expected to be attended by around 1,600 athletes from 130 countries. (Antaranews)

VOINews, Jakarta - The results of the 10th World Water Forum (WWF) are expected to be Indonesia's contribution to the world in water management, said Endra Saleh Atmawidjaja, an expert staff member at the Ministry of Public Works and Housing.

During a panel discussion on the "Road to the 10th World Water Forum," which was streamed on Tuesday, he mentioned that the forum is also expected to set benchmarks for future WWF events following Indonesia's hosting.

WWF is the largest international forum for discussing water resources management, involving various stakeholders. Indonesia will host the 10th WWF in Bali from May 18 to 24, 2024.

The 10th WWF will cover six topics: water for humans and nature, water security and prosperity, disaster risk reduction and management, cooperation and hydro diplomacy, water and innovative finance, as well as knowledge and innovation.

Agendas from several groups of countries, including the Mediterranean, Asia-Pacific, and America regions, are also included.

To ensure the success of the 10th WWF, the government has been taking preparatory steps since 2022, starting with the issuance of Presidential Decree No. 1 of 2023 on the 10th World Water Forum Organizing National Committee, according to Atmawidjaja.

Preparations for the WWF are not only being undertaken at the national level but also at the international level.

At the national level, the National Stakeholder Forum has been held from July 2022 until January 2023, with the participation of ministries/institutions, academicians, practitioners, associations, state-owned enterprises (SOEs), regional-owned enterprises (BUMDs), and private companies.

It has also included national and international media, representatives of bilateral and multilateral development partners, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international organizations, and foreign embassies in Jakarta.

At the international level, Indonesia has attended various events and promoted the WWF, inviting several countries, communities, and associations to participate in this highly significant process, he informed.

He stated that President Joko Widodo expects the 10th WWF to showcase Indonesia's leadership in global forums. (Antaranews)

The Supreme Court in military-ruled Myanmar will hear an appeal this week by former leader Aung San Suu Kyi against two of her convictions, a source familiar with the case said on Monday, as the Nobel laureate seeks to reduce her 33 years of jail time.

The 78-year-old has been convicted of a litany of offences from incitement and election fraud to multiple counts of corruption since the military arrested her during a February 2021 coup against her elected government.

Suu Kyi's allies and Western governments have condemned her incarceration as a junta play to prevent any comeback by the popular figurehead of Myanmar's decades-long struggle for democracy.

The Supreme Court has announced it will hear appeals on Wednesday against Suu Kyi's conviction for a breach of the official secrets act and for electoral fraud. The source, who declined to be identified because of sensitivities over her cases, said a decision could take two months.

A spokesperson for the junta could not immediately be reached for confirmation.

The military insists defendants are afforded due process by an independent judiciary, countering criticism from human rights groups over the jailing of multiple members of the pro-democracy movement in secret trials, and the resumption of executions after a decades-long hiatus.

Myanmar has been locked in conflict since the military seized power on the grounds of unaddressed irregularities in a November 2020 election that Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party swept in a landslide.

The NLD denied fraud and has since been dissolved along with 39 other parties for failure to register for an election for which the generals have yet to set a date.

Activists have urged the junta not to hold the election, warning it could see an intensification of bloody violence between the military and a pro-democracy resistance movement. (Reuters)

Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn inaugurated the opening of parliament on Monday, setting the stage for an attempt by the progressive Move Forward Party to form a government after its surprise election win six weeks ago.

Move Forward won big support from youth voters and the capital Bangkok, campaigning overwhelmingly on social media on an anti-establishment platform that could complicate its effort to win enough support to form a coalition government.

It will team up in parliament with the populist heavyweight Pheu Thai Party after the two won the lion's share of seats, trouncing parties allied with a royalist military that has controlled government since a 2014 coup.

The two are part of an eight-party alliance and have played down talk of a rift over the house speaker post, which could determine the passage of flagship legislation and timing of key votes.

Late on Monday, in what is being seen as a compromise between Move Forward and Pheu Thai, the alliance nominated veteran politician Wan Muhamad Noor Matha for house speaker and gave a deputy speaker position each to the two main parties.

Wan Noor, 79, of the Prachachart Party has been closely allied with Pheu Thai in the past, and served in its administration led by billionaire Thaksin Shinawatra between 2002 and 2005.

Parliament is expected to endorse the speaker on Tuesday.

Analysts say a Move Forward-led government is still not a certainty.

The speaker is expected later this month to table a joint session of parliament to decide on a prime minister, which requires the votes of more than half of the 750 members of the bicameral legislature.

The alliance is backing Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat, 42, to become premier and Pita needs 376 votes to secure the post. He currently has 312.

He will need 64 more votes from either rival parties or members of a conservative-learning Senate that was appointed under the military and has previously locked horns with Move Forward over some of its policies.

Pita last week said he had secured enough support in the Senate. He also faces an investigation for breaching election rules, which could further complicate his bid, Kiatkwankul said.

"Worst-case, they become a formidable opposition ... No matter how it turns out, it is not the end of Move Forward and democratic forces," he added. (Reuters)