VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian Ministry of Maritime and Fishery prepared the #PasarLautIndonesia or in English #IndonesianSeaMarket gallery in three locations. The first is at the Terminal 3 arrival gate of Soekarno-Hatta's International Airport. The second and the third will be at the rest area of the Trans Java toll road, namely at the Km 260 B Brebes and Km 456 Salatiga.

The galleries are a support from the Maritime and Fishery Ministry for the Proud of Indonesian Product movement. That was stated by Director General for Maritime and Fishery Product Competitiveness Strengthening, Artati Widiarti as quoted from the ministry's website on Monday (24/5).

Artati said that the galleries were also part of the initial launching of "Indonesian Sea Market". At the #PasarLautIndonesia gallery, there will be top sea and fish products of micro, small, medium enterprises (MSMEs). The gallery was launched at Terminal 3 of Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.

At the gallery, visitors can buy various processed products such as fish cereal, fish floss, crab floss, fish sauce, fish noodle, milkfish nut, fish skin, and shrimp paste. There are also skin care products such as facial wash, facial mask, shampoo, serum, spa salt, as well as sea-based handicrafts.

Artati further stated that specially for the galleries at KM 260 B and 456 Trans Java Toll Road rest area, there will be more products of local micro-small-medium business. Therefore, the Proud of Indonesian Product can move the national economy and a realization of Indonesian people's mutual cooperation. She added that by purchasing MSMEs products, one supports the people's economy and at the same time is proud of national products.

Similarly, President Director of state-owned airport operator, PT Angkasa Pura II, Muhammad Awaluddin said that a collective action in various sector is needed in supporting MSMEs. He also ensured his support for various MSMEs as initiated by the Maritime and Fishery Ministry along with Indonesian Sea Market. One of which is providing an activity area around the airport.

He said choosing Soekarno-Hatta as one of the gallery locations is a right choice because it is the busiest airport in Indonesia. Soekarno-Hatta is also the main entrance to Indonesia and the main hub for domestic air connectivity.

America  plans to reopen its Consulate in Palestinian Jerusalem. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made this statement on Tuesday local time. Previously, the US Consulate was closed in 2019. The closure was carried out while President Donald Trump was still in office. In 2017, Donald Trump also recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and then moved his embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. At that time, several countries such as Russia, Germany, Ireland, Malta, Mexico, Portugal, Australia, Poland and Sweden rejected the invitation to inaugurate the transfer, whether for technical reasons or principles.

The status of Jerusalem is one of many highly emotional and controversial issues that have sparked the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Both sides claim the city as their capital. As a background, when Britain's mandate on Palestine ended in 1947, the United Nations passed a resolution calling for an Arab-Palestinian state and a state of Israel living  side by side safely and declaring Jerusalem an international city. But in the first Arab-Israeli war a year later, Israel captured the western part of the city of Jerusalem, and Jordan took control of the eastern part. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, Israel succeeded in controlling east Jerusalem, and at the same time declared the city the capital of Israel. The American Embassy itself had been opened since 1948 in Tel Aviv, while in Jerusalem there was an American consulate office.

The conditions of the open conflict between Israel and Palestine have never subsided. Indeed, on May 21, a ceasefire was reached, but a few hours later, clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians occurred again.

Naturally, the world hopes that there will be steps to maintain and bring about peace which is jointly pursued. Both by the warring parties and the surrounding countries. According to the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, the US has taken steps to re-open its Consulate in Jerusalem as a form of support for Palestine. Something doubted by many, considering that the US has always stated that Israel is its main ally in the Middle East.

Hopefully there will be communication made both by the international community through the United Nations and other organizations so that there are steps that can reduce the Israeli and Palestinian conflicts.

Sewangi Island, which is located in Tanah Bumbu regency, is the place for making ‘Jukung’. Jukung is a traditional boat from Banjar tribe, one of the original tribes of the inhabitants of South Kalimantan. From Batulicin, the capital of Tanah Bambu Regency, Pulau Sewangi is about 20 kilometers away.The area of the island is about 4,500 square meters with a length of about 15 kilometers. Visitors can go around the island by motorboat for about an hour, while witnessing the beauty of Sewangi Island which is still beautiful.

Boats from Sewangi Island have been famous for a long time in some regions of Kalimantan. Although the island is small, the boat has superior raw materials, namely ironwood, Cangel wood, and Mada Hirang wood.The residents of Sewangi Island mostly work as builders of high quality boats. To make Jukung, it takes a lot of time.One Jukung can take about two weeks. The length of time to make a Jukung, depends on the material, size, and what kind of model the customer wants. The selling price of Jukung also varies, starting from 3 million rupiah to 8 million rupiah.

Around the 6th and 7th centuries AD, the manufacture of jukung increasingly developed in the Sewangi island area. This island is also the main producer of Jukung in South Kalimantan. Now, based on available data, Sewangi Island is the largest area for Jukung craftsmen in Indonesia.The profession of making Jukung has been carried out by the residents of Sewangi from generation to generation. Raw materials for boat building are also available on the island. In addition, the position of Sewangi Island itself is also strategic to be used as a shipyard.All these supporting factors make Sewangi Island a supplier of Jukung for other parts of Indonesia. Not only seeing the Jukung was made, visitors can also take a tour on a Jukung that sails with the Jukung craftsman. The cost of sailing with Jukung is according to mutual agreement between you and the craftsman.

The Indonesian Embassy in London organizes a pick-up service in Exeter to provide immigration and consular services for Indonesian citizens living in Exeter City and the western region of England.The services are provided in compliance with the strict rules of the Covid-19 health protocols according to the local government regulations. The pick-up program is a commitment of the Indonesian Embassy in London to make it easier for Indonesian citizens to apply for passports which have been constrained by travel to London due to the Covid-19 pandemic.The program was held at the Exeter Community Center on 22 May. A total of 22 Indonesian citizens have received the pick-up services. The Indonesian Embassy in London keeps improving the services and assisting Indonesian citizens in the UK and Ireland, especially amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Indonesia and the European Union have succeeded in completing the modification of the European Union's concession schedule for Indonesia's country-specific tariff rate quota (TRQ) for cassava products.With this new agreement, Indonesia can export cassava with product code ‘HS 0714’ to the European Union at a rate of 6 percent of 165,000 tons per year.The Indonesia-European Union agreement for cassava products is a consequence of Britain leaving the European Union (Brexit). This agreement was ratified by the signing of the Exchange of Letters (EOL) document on May 11, 2021.The signing was carried out at the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Brussels, Belgium between the Indonesian Ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO), Syamsul Bahri Siregar and the Portuguese Ambassador to the European Union, Nuno Brito representing the European Union.The signing was also witnessed by Indonesian Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union, Andri Hadi. This agreement was reached after six rounds of negotiations that began in 2018.