VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Hundreds of Indonesian citizens in Romania, attended the Eid al-Fitr 1445 Hijri festivity, which is Indonesian   most important holiday, followed by  halal bihalal gathering  held by the Indonesian Embassy in Bucharest for the first time in the last five years. It was held  at the Indonesian Ambassador's residence in Bucharest, Romania, Wednesday (10/4/2024).

In a written statement from the Indonesian Embassy in Bucharest received in Jakarta, Friday, the Indonesian Ambassador to Romania Meidyatama Suryodiningrat said that the Eid al-Fitr celebration was very meaningful because there were no other foreign representatives in Bucharest that held the event.

This event became a momentum for the Indonesian people coming from various cities in Romania, such as the cities of Cluj and Timiosara which are more than 450 km from Bucharest, to pray and strengthen social bond in celebrating Eid al-Fitr.

According to the Indonesian Ambassador, the Eid al-Fitr celebration was also attended by the Malaysian Ambassador Sirajuzzaman bin Tengku Mohamed Ariffin. Also present were Muslim citizens from Romania, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Türkiye.

After the Eid al-Fitr prayers, Indonesian people from various religions participated in the halal bihalal gathering to forgive each other. In this event, typical Indonesian food was also served, such as lontong rice cake, opor ayam or chicken curry, sayur lodeh (mixed vegetables cooked in coconut milk), beef stew, sambal terasi or shrimp paste chili sauce and others, to heal the longing of Indonesian people for their homeland.

Ambassador Meidyatama reminded that for Indonesians  Eid al-Fitr is not only a holiday for Muslims but also a means of gathering nationally to strengthen brotherhood. According to him, this is very valuable for Indonesian citizens who are far from their homeland.

Indonesian Ambassador to Egypt, Lutfi Rauf welcomed the commitment of buyers of coffee commodities from Egypt, Al Amal for Agricultural Crops to boost the volume of imports of robusta coffee beans from Indonesia. When attending the annual meeting of Egyptian coffee buyers in Damanhour City,  Province Beheira on Saturday (6/4), Ambassador Lutfi conveyed that his side appreciates the importer Al Amal for Agricultural Crops which continuously imports Indonesian coffee beans.

As stated by the  Indonesian Embassy in Cairo,  trade cooperation continues to be developed of both countries.  According to Ambassador Lutfi, the need for coffee consumption continues to increase in the Egyptian market, especially for robusta coffee beans that make Egypt a very potential market for Indonesian exporters.

Director of Al Amal for Agricultural Crops, Ragab Shehata pointed out that in 2023, his company imported more than 4,500 tonnes of Indonesian coffee beans, particularly robusta coffee beans which are very popular with Egyptians.

Ragab also revealed that in 2024, his company is committed to importing 5,000 tons of robusta coffee beans with a value of US$21 million or around Rp333.9 billion. He expressed his deepest gratitude  and appreciation to the Indonesian representatives in Cairo,  export players and Indonesian coffee farmers who have worked hard to provide the best coffee to the Egyptian market. Until now, Egypt is the second largest market destination for Indonesian coffee exports to the global market. Referring to the Egyptian Bureau of Statistics report, Indonesian coffee bean exports to the Egyptian market in 2023 were ranked first among all world coffee exporting countries to Egypt with an export value of Rp 1 .46 trillion.

Meanwhile, the Trade Attache of the Indonesian Embassy in Egypt,  M Syahran Bhakti  hopes that Indonesian coffee exporters can meet the demand of Egyptian coffee buyers in 2024 up to more than Rp1.5 trillion.

Every community has unique and different traditions and cultures. These cultural differences create different local wisdom in each community. For people of Lombok, one of the traditions that has become wisdom is lighting theDilah Jojoror often called the Maleman tradition. This tradition is one of the local wisdoms that can be found especially for people of Jabon Tentan Village in Bagu Village, Pringgarata sub-district, Central Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara.

Dilah Jojor comes from the word 'Dilah' which means lamp, and Jojor is a form of lamp taken from the traditional  language of the Sasak tribe. In the Maleman tradition, people usually use Dilah Jojor which measures 15 cm to 30 cm long. Dilah Jojor is made from Jamplung fruit seeds which are peeled and then dried in the sun until completely dry. Next, the dried Jamplung fruit is roasted until it is charred or black, then pounded and mixed with cotton until it is evenly mixed into a dough. The final stage is to attach the dough to a stick made of bamboo, the length of which can be adjusted to suit your needs. Jamplung fruit was chosen as the basic ingredient because it contains a lot of oil so that it can produce a fire that is good for lighting and the fire can even last for a long time.

Maleman tradition itself is carried out on the last 10 nights of the month of Ramadan on odd nights only, namely the 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 29th. Usually, the people of Jabon Tentan village light Dilah Jojor in every house on the 25th and 27th. This tradition has not faded despite the time continuously developing with increasingly sophisticated technology, especially in terms of the availability of electric power as lighting which is evenly distributed throughout the Lombok community.

The celebration of Eid al-Fitr feels incomplete without the presence of ketupat. Actually, this dish is a Southeast Asian typical dish which is made from rice. To make ketupat, we have to first wrap it from woven young coconut leaves. Then, it is  boiled until it is cooked.

Ketupat which exists in various regions in Indonesia has many different types, such as Ketupat Lemak in Pontianak. If Ketupat generally uses rice as its main ingredient, but Ketupat Lemak actually uses sticky rice. The cooking method is a little different. The process of making Ketupat Lemak begins with washing the sticky rice and placing it in woven coconut leaves. The sticky rice inserted must be full. This is certainly different from Ketupat rice which is usually only half filled, because rice will expand, while sticky rice will not. Then, the Ketupat is boiled in coconut milk that has been added with enough salt. Afterwards,  the coconut milk is dry, the Ketupat can be removed and ready to be served.

Ketupat Lemak is usually eaten with other typical Eid side dishes, such as beef rendang, chicken curry, potato chili sauce or pineapple chili sauce. Apart from being eaten with the family at home during Eid, Ketupat Lemak and other typical Eid side dishes are also usually served as food by the people of Pontianak.