VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Indonesian Ambassador to Kenya, Mohamad Hery Saripudin, said that member countries of the Non-Aligned Movement -NAM were obliged to support Palestine to become a full member of the United Nations -UN. A written statement from the Indonesian Embassy in Nairobi received in Jakarta, Thursday (18/1) reported that according to the Ambassador, Palestine has the right to be equal with other countries, especially in fighting for its interests. In line with the NAM's commitment to fighting for Palestinian independence, the NAM is obliged to support Palestine to become a member of the UN. Ambassador Hery Saripudin, who also served as Chair of the Indonesian Delegation at the Ministerial Level Meeting and the NAM Palestine Committee Meeting, conveyed this at the latter in Kampala, Uganda, Wednesday (17/1). He said that more than 24 thousand residents in Gaza were victims and more than 85 percent of the residents were driven from their homes. He added that this situation increasingly emphasizes the risk of genocide. NAM cannot remain silent, he said. In addition, the Ambassador also conveyed four messages from Indonesia to the NAM, namely, first, to continue fighting for an end to Israeli aggression, second, increase the distribution of humanitarian aid, including helping with the Gaza reconstruction process. Third, continue to push for Israeli accountability, including the accusation   of genocide. In this regard, Indonesia supports South Africa's initiative to submit Israel to the International Court of Justice. The fourth message seeks to hold a peace process under the supervision of the UN General Assembly. The NAM Palestine Committee meeting was held on the sidelines of the NAM Summit on January 15 and 16. The meeting was chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uganda, Odongo Jeje Abubakhar, and attended by member countries of the NAM Palestine Committee, including Indonesia, South Africa, India, Iran, Cuba, Malaysia and Zimbabwe.

Banjarnegara, which is located in a regency of Central Java Province, has a special dish made from rice and wrapped in woven coconut leaves, namely Kupat Landan. It is usually eaten when celebrating Idul Fitri.Ketupat Landan  has a unique taste, soft texture, and distinctive color. Precisely, the ingredients and method for cooking Ketupat Landan are the same as ketupat in general, but the difference is that Ketupat Landan   uses boiling water. Ketupat Landan uses ash deposited from coconut trees to boil it. The ash comes from coconuts fiber that has been cleaned and then burned and after it becomes ash. Then, it is mixed with water until smooth and then settled. After it settles, then take the water from the coconut fiber ash deposits and separate it in another place. Afterwards, the water is used to boil the ketupat for approximately 4-5 hours. The well-done ketupat will be red in color, and when it is split, this reddish brown color will be clearly visible on the part of the ketupat which is attached to the wrapper.Apart from the color of the ketupat being reddish brown, the taste of this ketupat is also more savory and the texture is softer. Usually, Ketupat Landan is eaten with chicken Opor and other dishes made with coconut milk. Besides, there are also other dishes for this Ketupat Landan to be taken with, such as tempe mendoan, pecel and gado-gado. For you who are culinary lovers in Indonesia, Central Java, especially in Banjarnegara, please try ketupat landan and its other dishes which become the favorite dish of Banjarnegara. It is guaranteed to make you addicted because of its unique taste.

Head of the Culture and Tourism Cooperation Division of the ASEAN Korea Center Secretariat, Alex Macatuno in Seoul, South Korea on Wednesday (17/1) conveyed that from 11 representatives of ASEAN member countries in Seoul, Indonesia was selected to lead the Working Group -Pokja Tourism and ASEAN Korea Center Culture at the first session in 2024. In a press release from the Indonesian Embassy in Seoul, he stated that with the election of Indonesia, the Indonesian Embassy in Seoul serves as the host and the Embassy of the Lao People's Democratic Republic in Seoul as its co-host. After the election, Coordinator of the Creative and Digital Economy Function, Acceleration of Start Up and Public Diplomacy at the Indonesian Embassy in Seoul, Joannes Ekaprasetya Tandjung and representative from the Lao Embassy, Soudavanh directly chaired the first session which discussed the two main agendas, namely the activity report for the 2023 period and the 2024 work plan.Joannes has also explained Indonesia's leadership in the 2024 ASEAN Korea Center Tourism and Culture Working Group will function as a representative who not only voices the tourism and cultural interests of the ASEAN Committee countries in Seoul to the ASEAN Korea Center, but also seeks broader opportunities for cooperation based on culture and tourism for closer friendship among ASEAN countries and South Korea. Indonesia's leadership in the ASEAN Korea Center Working Group reflects recognition of Indonesia's crucial role in strengthening cooperation between ASEAN countries and South Korea in the tourism and culture sector.The Indonesian Embassy in Seoul as the driving force behind the promotion of tourism, culture and the creative economy of Indonesia, is determined to advance this collaboration with some activities, such as the Colorful North Sulawesi event and the Indonesia Night in Daegu.  Through this leadership, it is hoped that it can have a positive impact in supporting economic growth, sustainable development and strengthening relations among ASEAN countries and South Korea in the tourism and culture sectors.The activities during the 2023 period included organizing ASEAN Week 2023, tourism promotional videos production for ASEAN countries sponsored by the ASEAN Korea Center, ASEAN Digital Library and the Sustainable Tourism Development Forum. A series of activities throughout 2024 include tourism promotion and cultural exchange, programs organizing the ASEAN-Korea Culture and Tourism Integrated Experience exhibition and capacity development programs for developing ASEAN-Korea quality tourism towards sustainability.

A total of 66 students from 55 senior high schools/vocational schools/Islamic high school SMA/SMK/MA from 27 provinces across Indonesia competed in the 2024 National German Language Olympiad at the Goethe-Institut Jakarta on January 16. The first and second winners will represent Indonesia to compete in the International German Language Olympiad in Germany next July. The National German Language Olympiad organized by the Goethe-Institut Indonesien in collaboration with the Indonesian German Language Teachers Association (IGBJI) is an annual national ompetition for German language learners aged 15-17 years. This year, the National German Language Olympiad, which is entering its 17th edition, will be held offline for the first time after the previous three editions were held online due to the pandemic. In the winner announcement ceremony at GoetheHaus Jakarta on Wednesday (17/1), Kheiren Valentine Husnafsky (SMA Ignatius Global School Palembang) was crowned first winner. Sebastian Dikko Daniswara (SMAN 3 Yogyakarta) was selected as the second winner. Kheiren Valentine Husnafsky and Sebastian Dikko Daniswara will continue their struggle to compete in the International German Language Olympiad which is scheduled to take place in Göttingen City, Germany from 15 until 22 July 2024. Around 100 students from 50 countries are expected to compete for the title of best German language learner. This grand international competition takes place every two years. Meanwhile, Maria Margaretha Steffany (Santa Laurensia Alam Sutera High School) won third place and Chatima Anandakhorita (PGII 1 Bandung High School) took fourth place. The fifth winner was Fujima Salomo Maetuzala Sihombing (SMAN 1 Plus Matauli Pandan) and the sixth winner was Anindita Kirana Lestari Adinarto (Garuda Scholar High School, Jakarta). 3rd to 6th place winners received scholarships for German language courses for teenagers this summer in Germany. The finalists who competed in this year's National German Language Olympiad had previously gone through the preliminary round, which was attended by 1,301 students from 366 SMA/SMK/MA during October to November 2023 at 16 examination sites in 31 provinces.