North Korea looks to Singapore, Indonesia for economy boost (Credit: ABC)
North Korea’s ceremonial leader, Kim Yong Nam, visited the Southeast Asian nations this week in what’s being called a bid to build economic partnerships with the countries.

Mr Kim, the President of the Presidium of North Korea’s Parliament, spent two days in Singapore where he visited a food factory and an electronics manufacturer.

Observers say North Korea may have used the trip to learn how to develop a successful growth model that does not threaten Pyongyang’s political power structure.

Others say, Singapore offers an attractive model to North Korea for attracting direct foreign investment.

Presenter: Bill Bainbridge

Speaker: Professor Zhi Zhiqun, visiting Senior Research Fellow at Singapore’s East Asian Institute

ZHU: I think Mr Kim is here trying to break up the isolation and sanctions imposed by western powers, especially the United States and Japan. So he’s trying to reach out to form partnerships with other countries.

BAINBRIDGE: And is that working with Singapore, I mean what kind of history do Singapore and North Korea have in terms of their trade relationship?

ZHU: My understanding is that Singapore already has some investment in North Korea, so does Indonesia. And I have to say that many of these Southeast Asian nations are less ideological and less critical of North Korea. So from a pure business perspective I think they see North Korea as a new frontier for investing, so it’s a good opportunity for many countries in the region.

BAINBRIDGE: Why do you think that is that they’re less as you put it, ideological and critical of North Korea? Why don’t they go along with the UN approach, the US approach to isolate North Korea and punish it for its threatening positions on nuclear armament?

ZHU: That’s a good point, I think in general these countries also support UN resolutions and support western countries approach to North Korea. However I don’t think and they completely agree with specific policies. For example basically western powers, especially the United States their approach to North Korea is based on sanctions and isolation and I think this kind of approach lacks creativity and is really morally deficient, because what kind of objective can these policies achieve? Well it’s the poor North Korean people who are suffering, the North Korean ruling elites in Pyongyang are not going to be affected by such an approach. So I think many countries in the region perhaps think differently from the United States and other western powers. So they may wish to try a different approach.

BAINBRIDGE: So is there evidence then on the other hand that engagement with North Korea by Singapore and Indonesia and other countries is acutally promoting more openness from North Korea?

ZHU: I think so, for example Indonesia and North Korea recently signed an agreement to exchange news, photos, tv footage, earlier Associated Press already opened a bureau in Pyongyang. So I think there are signs, there are indications that North Korea is moving positively towards integrating itself with the international community. And also I learnt that for example previously visitors to North Korea cannot take photos and cannot carry cell phones with them, and more recently such restrictions have been eased. So there are positive signs from North Korea, so I think such a development needs to be encouraged.

BAINBRIDGE: So what some people are suggesting is that North Korea wants to learn from Singapore’s economic model. Why would Singapore be an appealing model to the North Koreans?

ZHU: Well you remember before Kim Jong-il died China invited Kim Jong-il to visit two towns like Shanghai, Shenzhen. I think Kim Jong-il was probably very impressed. However China is such a big country, I think smaller nations in Southeast Asia are perhaps more relevant, and I think perhaps North Korea feels that Singapore especially as one of the four tigers has much to offer to North Korea, unlike China which is a totally different situation. So I believe that Singapore serves as a good model for North Korea, especially in terms of attracting foreign investment.

BAINBRIDGE: And what about Indonesia. Kim Yong Nam is in Indonesia now, what do you think he’ll gain from that trip?

ZHU: Indonesia is a different story. Indonesia and North Korea actually have had good relations since the 1950s. I think they established relations in the early 1960s. Indonesia offers a different model because Indonesia is also a nation rich in resources. And North Korea is in the same situation, North Korea actually has a lot of minerals and other resources. I think they can make a lot of money by exporting these resources and Indonesia definitely has much to offer in this regard.

BAINBRIDGE: And so perhaps a closer model for North Korea would be Singapore?

ZHU: Well I would say both Indonesia and Singapore can offer something to North Korea. And of course especially in terms of growth and investment. Perhaps Singapore offers a better model, a better approach, but I think North Korea can really learn a lot from many of these countries in the region, and it can also learn from China, although it’s on a much larger scale. So by and large I believe that all these countries in the region need to encourage North Korea, to help North Korea to integrate into the regional economy and that’s the proper approach I believe. Personally I don’t like, I don’t think the sanctions and the isolation preferred by western powers will work.

RadioAustralia.net.au

Indonesia’s keen interest in becoming the newest member of BRICS – a bloc of emerging-market nations comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – has sparked off a round of debate on the future and efficacy of South-South groupings.

István Tarrósy, assistant professor of political science at the Department of Political Studies at the University of Pécs and managing director of the Africa Research Centre in Pécs, Hungary, said that Indonesia’s development statistics make the country a shoe-in for membership: it is the largest economy in southeast Asia and is a demographic giant with a population of 248 million people, making it the fourth most populous country in the world, ahead of even Brazil and Russia.

It also has an active labour force of 117 million people, as of 2011.

Indonesia has long been recognised as a leading actor in the developing world, most notably for its active role within the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) ever since it hosted the Bandung Conference in 1955.

“Its voice has always been decisive in any issue connected with the then Third World, today, the Global South. In terms of South-South cooperation, and in light of a redefined system of North-South dialogue within a gradually more multi-polar world, Indonesia has its place among the top categories of states influencing how our transnational global world develops,” Tarrósy told IPS.

Furthermore, given the country’s “pragmatic foreign policy practices and long-term cooperation with countries of the region and beyond, Indonesia could strengthen the common voice of emerging economies via BRICS. With the potential entrance of Indonesia, BRICS would then need to redefine, or rather refine its status as (possibly) one of the most important inter-regional groupings of countries of the global South,” he added.

Another significant issue is the investment sector, on which developing or emerging economies rely heavily. Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Indonesia, and Indonesian FDI flown into other, less strong economies across southeast Asia and beyond, could be further encouraged by BRICS membership, which would facilitate better trans-regional cooperation.

For instance, it could pave the way for increased “South-South cooperation in Africa, with a more substantial Indonesian role in project generation and financing. In addition to China’s and India’s growing presence and involvement in the African continent, Indonesia could play (a bigger role), particularly if we (acknowledge) the growing amount of official development assistance (ODA) emerging economies have granted Africa,” according to Tarrósy.

Indonesia is one of Asia’s leading economic powerhouses; with last year’s economic growth recorded at 6.5 percent, the country is poised to overtake Russia in the regional economic race, said John Mashaka, financial analyst at Wells Fargo Capital Markets.

He told IPS that Indonesia recorded exports worth 204 billion dollars in 2011. Compared to its European counterparts like Greece, Italy and Spain, which are still floundering in the economic slush of the 2008 crash, Indonesia’s credit ratings shot up and the country’s economic outlook remains favorable.

Its domestic market is huge and the current economic boom can be attributed to its political stability and sound economic and monetary policies, which have attracted consistent FDI.

“In short, Indonesia is an economic power to be (reckoned) with and its decision to join the BRICS could have a huge impact in terms of the body’s credibility. Indonesian membership will definitely solidify BRICS’ capital composition, and also bring on board extraordinary fiscal capability,” Mashaka told IPS.

BRICS versus IBSA?

Thomas Lawo, executive director of the European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI) in Bonn, Germany, doubts that BRICS will be a major game-changer in global geopolitics in an increasingly multi-polar world, mostly because of its members’ divergent economic trends and political interests.

On the one hand, Russia is set to re-emerge as a strong global power with a dominant role in central and western Asia, along with India and China.

“But India needs to sort out its internal rifts and neighbourhood problems first, while China is becoming a strong force to reckon with in Asia, Africa and Europe. China is definitely the (primary) growth-engine of Asia and is stepping up its influence in the global economy (armed) with military strength to match its ambitions,” Lawo said.

Indonesia, on the other hand, is more comfortably clustered with South Africa and Brazil as a regional power and an economic anchor-country for the southeast Asian region, but lesser on a wider global scale.

Another possibility is the re-emergence of a politically stronger ASEAN, now that Burma (Myanmar) is opening up to its neighbours. In this context, the MIST countries – Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand – will become more relevant, if they can overcome their internal problems and play the regional integration card.

Alexandra A. Arkhangelskaya, head of the Centre for Information and International Relations at the Institute for African Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, explained to IPS that after the admission of South Africa, BRICS will likely be expanded to include Indonesia, Turkey, Australia, Nigeria and Mexico.

If this happens, she stressed, BRICS will be pushed to clearly articulate its specific identity in the international arena.

The rise of BRICS as regional bloc also raises the question of whether its role is very different from that of IBSA, the same group minus China and Russia.

BRICS has certainly attracted a lot of attention and it is widely accepted that the bloc will try to achieve certain broad economic reforms as well as attempt to restructure the Western-dominated global financial architecture.

Still, Arkhangelskaya believes that the extent to which IBSA will be forced to live in the former’s shadow will very much depend on South Africa, which is currently “sitting on two chairs”, as well as China’s role in BRICS and the world economy.

Experts fear that IBSA will be forced to dissolve in the light of BRICS’ expansion.

Some analysts still argue that IBSA and BRICS represent the old clash of India versus China; others believe it is more likely that the groups will find themselves on very different tiers of the South-South multilateral cake.

Although there is some overlap in core issues, the fact remains that the BRICS countries are more focused on economy, while IBSA is concerned with promoting democratic values and other causes common to the three countries, and has a distinct personality of its own.

Thus, IBSA can remain an instrumental and practical mechanism of the three countries representing three different continents, sharing their interests and strengthening their economic cooperation to further the interests of the South.

(Source : InterPressService IPS.org)

Web users can visit googleartproject.com to see around 100 pieces of art, including traditional Indonesian batiks and artifacts from the Sultanates of ancient Indonesia, like the Kutai Kingdom in East Kalimantan.

The Web site features high-resolution images of the pieces and explains their cultural significance. Users can also view a map pinpointing where in Indonesia each item originated from.

For some of the works featured — like Mega Mendung batik cloth, which shows a Chinese influence — users can even view a video explaining how they were made.

The site provides insight into Indonesia’s diverse cultures and traditions by featuring the subtle differences in motif and technique evident in batiks created from one region to the next.

Viewers can also learn about the varieties of keris , or traditional daggers, from different parts of the country.

Also featured on the site are statues and sacred objects used in ceremonies and healing rituals, some still practiced today.

The Google Art project is a global partnership between Google and 151 cultural institutions in 40 countries that aims to make artwork accessible to anyone, anywhere, anytime.

The Acropolis museum in Greece, along with some other participating institutions, offers users a virtual three-dimensional tour of the actual museum.

Google Art Project launched in February 2011 with about 1,000 artworks from such institutions as the Tate Gallery in London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Uffizi in Florence and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.

“From now on anyone can visit these great institutions with just the click of a mouse,” Google president Margo Georgiadis said. “This project breaks down all of the barriers and allows people to study art in a seamless way.”

“kami (Presiden SBY dan Sekjen PBB) merancang hubungan kemitraan strategik baik antara pemerintah Indonesia denga Perwakilan PBB di Jakarta maupun dengan PBB pada umumnya” terang Presiden SBY.

Ban Ki-Moon juga menyatakan rasa senangnya atas hubungan baik Indonesia yang terjalin dengan PBB selama ini.

Selain membicarakan masalah bilateral PBB-Indonesia, keduanya juga bertukar pikiran soal perkembangan Timur Tengah dan Afrika Utara, pentingnya Millenium Development Goals (MDGs), perubahan iklim dan KTT Rio+20.

Selain itu, mereka juga berdiskusi soal perkembangan isu Laut China Selatan, proses demokasi di Myanmar, Semenanjung Korea dan perbatasan Thailand dan Kamboja.

Saat membicarakan tentang Indonesia, Ban Ki-Moon memuji kemajuan yang telah dicapai oleh Indonesia, salah satunya adalah peran keketuaan Indonesia di ASEAN 2011, upaya dalam memelihara kerukunan dan keharmonisan dan pencapaian di bidang sosial dan ekonomi.

News Source: Deplu

Oleh: Ahmad Cholis Hamzah, MSc*

Sejak lama dunia memperhatikan sepak terjang junta militer Myanmar yang memerintah negaranya dengan keras menggunakan kekuatan militernya. Demonstrasi rakyatnya yang di ikkuti banyak biksu Budha juga di hadapi dengan kekerasan. Dalam banyak hal kejadian-kejadian di dalam negeri Myanmar mengingatkan kejadian-kejadian serupa di Indonesia ketika masih dibawah Jenderal Soeharto. Seluruh elemen pemimin bangsa ditingkat pusat sampai daerah di kuasai oleh militer dan dengan menggunakan kekuatan militer. Kelompok-kelompok yang menentang pemerintah di penjara tanpa alasan hukum jelas. Di Myanmar pemimpin pembangkang Au San Suu Kyi di penjara di rumahnya dan dihilangkan hak-hak politiknya. Pembunuhan terhadap para kelompok pembangkang juga sering terjadi.

Negara-negara barat sejak lama menginginkan pengucilan Myanmar karena telah melakukan pelanggaran HAM berat. Kritikan-kritikan dan ancaman embargo negara-negara barat itu seakan masuk telinga kiri keluar telinga kanan bagi junta militer Myanmar. Negara-negara barat pun mendesak ASEAN untuk berbuat lebih banyak untuk “memaksa” Myanmar – sebagai anggota ASEAN untuk lebih demokratis dan menghargai hak-hak rakyatnya.

Sejak dulu negara – negara anggota ASEAN terutama pada jaman Soeharto dan Mahatir Muhammad selalu menekankan cara-cara penyelesaian damai terhadap Myanmar atau yang sering di sebut sebagai “Asian Ways”, cara-cara Asia dalam menyelesaikan konflik, lebih mementingkan musyawarah, berdialog seperti keluarga daripada dengan cara-cara ancaman embargo misalnya. Para pemimpin ASEAN sudah lama terbukti berhasil menggunakan cara –cara Asia ini dalam menyelesaikan konflik yang terjadi di negara-negara anggota ASEAN.

Pada saat Indonesia menjadi ketua ASEAN, Indonesia berhasil “menaklukkan” hati para jenderal junta Militer Myanmar untuk melakukan demokrasi damai di negerinya. Beberapa kali pertemuan tingkat tinggi dengan pejabat-pejabat Myanmar dilakukan, bahkan para pemimpin ASEAN setuju (meskipun melalui perdebatan serius) untuk memberikan kursi Ketua ASEAN kepada Myanmar pada tahun 2014 nanti. Dalam hal tersebut, para diplomat Indonesia sepertinya mati-matian berusaha agar Myanmar dapat secara mulus menjadi ketua ASEAN. Dan lihatlah hasilnya , Myanmar membebaskan Au San Suu Kyi dan menyelenggarakan pemilu. Myanmar secara perlahan membuka diri diharapkan akan menuju tahap-tahap demokrasi seperti yang terjadi di negara-negara anggota ASEAN lainnya.

Cara-cara penyelesaian konflik “Asian Ways” ini memang bagi negara-negara barat dinilai lambat; namun di akui lebih ampuh dan mengena dibanding dengan cara-cara ancaman. Budaya dan nilai-nilai yang berlaku di negara-negara ASEAN sebagai budaya yang mementingkan kekeluargaan dan harmoni itu ternyata terbukti dapat berperan besar dalam menyelesaikan persoalan global. Budaya ASEAN yang tidak “high profile” itu lebih bisa diterima dengan kepala dingin. Para pemimpin ASEAN yang menggunakan cara-cara diplomatik Asian Ways lebih bisa diterima sebagai partner bukan sebagai lawan.

 Semoga kedepannya para pemimpin ASEAN dan para generasi baru pemimpin di negara-negara ASEAN dapat mempertahankan nilai-nilai luhur budaya ASEAN ini. Para generasi baru di negara-negara ASEAN harus lebih memahami sifat budayanya sendiri dan mempertahankannya dengan baik. Dengan cara-cara seperti ini di yakini bahwa kawasan ASEAN ini akan damai dan menjadi role model bagi negara-negara lain di bebeberapa kawasan dunia ini yang masih menggunakan cara-cara kekerasan dalam menyelesaikan persoalan.

* Alumni University of London dan Universitas Airlangga Surabaya. Saat ini dosen STIE PERBANAS Surabaya

The message was delivered by Managing Director GRID Biennial 2012 Hans Peter Schoonenberg to Head of Press-Media and Cultural Affair of Indonesian Embassy at Den Hag Bonifatius Herindra, in Amsterdam, Netherlands on Wednesday, Feb 29.

“These photos clearly tell about the global problems which happen in many countries,” said Schoonenberg.

He further said the urban life scenes that were depicted in the photos have a strong message for each country which shares the same problems.

Further, Herindra confirmed that hundreds of photos taken by ANTARA News Agency journalists will be exhibited during the Amsterdam festival.

He said Indonesian photography would provide a new perspective about the development of photography in Indonesia and the role it plays in bringing difficult social issues to the public’s attention.

“We will share Indonesians aspirations with the world through their photography about urban life and the interaction between its citizens to their environment,” said Herindra.

The other delegation members are Head of AMTARA Indonesian Press Photo Agency Hermanus Prihatna and Editorial Secretary of ANTARA Benny S Butarbutar, who also explained the message of each photo that will be submitted to the committee.

“We appreciate the committee, which is very cooperative, in giving us the strategic location to display the Indonesian works. That is why we surely have prepared the world class works,” said Prihatna.

GRID Biennial Festival was first held in 2002 in Amsterdam and visited by hundreds of thousands of people.

In 2010, the festival recorded 400,000 people attending the event from throughout the world.

The high interest of visitors and participants, including those from Asian and African countries, have caused the committee to enlarge the exhibition location to others cities in Amsterdam.
(UU.A060/INE/O001)

Since Hosni Mubarak was toppled a year ago, I’ve been periodically asked to write a piece comparing Egypt now to Indonesia after Soeharto.

Since “country x is not country y” is one of my mantras, I’ve declined. I covered the fall of both men, and see very little beyond superficial similarities between Indonesia in 1998 and Egypt today.

But a small literature comparing Egypt’s uprising to Indonesia’s in 1998 has cropped up, suggesting Indonesia may be a predictor or a model for Egypt. So I’ve decided to throw my hat into the ring as a corrective. 

The latest example to catch my eye is John T. Sidel’s essay in Foreign Policy. Dr. Sidel, an academic focused on Southeast Asia, begins by listing a set of “striking parallels” between Egypt now and Indonesia over a decade ago: The countries are big, with Muslim majorities and significant non-Muslim minorities. They were led by anti-Western gadflies in the 50s and 60s. And after that they were military-dominated dictatorships with warm relations with the US, particularly during the cold war.

This is all true, but not particularly relevant or instructive. Most discussions of what Egypt and Indonesia have in common ignore the rather striking differences between their economies, geographies, and historical experiences. These differences are far more important than both states having lots of Muslims.

Money

Indonesia is an archipelago blessed with vast natural resources. It has abundant natural gas and oil production that, though dwindling, dwarfs Egypt’s. The country holds the richest tropical forests outside of the Amazon, the largest copper and gold mine in the world, and is the dominant exporter of commodities ranging from palm oil (with exports worth about $14 billion a year) to natural rubber ($7 billion a year) to plywood and paper.

Indonesia has dramatically more arable land than Egypt, with parts of Java and Bali home to some of the most productive soils on the globe. Traditionally, rich farmland has taken the edge off of economic shocks, with laid off factory workers returning to the village.

Indonesia has enjoyed centuries of maritime trade with China to the east and India to the west. It has a far more literate and productive population than Egypt. 

So, the geographic and economic reality couldn’t be more different between Egypt and Indonesia. Indonesia was a funnel for foreign manufacturing investment before the 1998 economic crisis that led to Soeharto’s downfall, and was so again a few years after. The country was soon booming again –thanks in part to having China and India nearby – creating jobs and leading average Indonesians to be happier with political change. Egypt, with creaky infrastructure and low productivity, has been losing manufacturing jobs for years. Egypt’s prospects for a fast economic recovery – let alone a boom like Indonesia’s – are much grimmer, and economics influences politics.

Backdrop

Sidel’s comparison of the revitalization of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) under Megawati Sukarnoputri in the early to mid-1990s and the rise of the Kifaya (Enough) movement in Mubarak’s final years is also misplaced.

Megawati, as the daughter of Indonesia’s founding president Sukarno, had an almost pre-fab cult of personality around her, with many early supporters muttering that she had some of her father’s mystical aura. The PDI was one of two opposition political parties legally tolerated by Soeharto, and he allowed her to take the reins, reasoning that a poorly-educated and inexperienced housewife would prove easy to control.

Soeharto’s guess was wrong, mostly because an ambitious group of reformers hitched themselves to Megawati’s star and started real opposition politics as Soeharto’s family members began jockeying to succeed the aging leader.

She was eventually removed as the head of the party, though perhaps had the last laugh when she became Indonesia’s president in 2001. Once in power, she demonstrated autocratic tendencies, a hyper-nationalism that sought to forgive human rights abuses by the Indonesian military, and an unwillingness to take steps that might effect the power and privilege of the Indonesian elite she’d been born into.

The Kifaya movement in Egypt was a far looser protest movement opposed to the continued rule of Mubarak and the obvious plans the regime was laying for succession by his son, Gamal (another superficial, but not particularly interesting parallel with Soeharto; despots frequently like dynastic succession). But Kifaya hasn’t existed in any real sense for years, never had a unifying political personality like “Mother Mega” (as her fans called her), and the activists that worked with it years ago have splintered into various political camps – socialist, Islamist, etc… since.

Immediate aftermath

And though the ultimate cause of Soeharto’s demise was the military withdrawal of support, as was the case with Mubarak, Soeharto was immediately replaced by his civilian vice president, BJ Habibie. Egypt’s military, meanwhile, has ruled directly for the past year in a fashion more like the military command council that followed Soeharto’s 1965 coup than post-Soeharto Indonesia in 1998.

The mercurial Habibie defied the military and set the stage for the independence of tiny East Timor. By June of 1999 the country had held its first free legislative elections since 1955. The result? The dominance of secular parties in the new legislature (among them Soeharto’s Golkar, which unlike Mubarak’s NDP was not outlawed). Islamist parties took about 35 percent of the vote (compared to the over 70 percent Islamist groups won in Egypt’s just completed parliamentary election.)

Indonesia did experience years of upheaval, with some horrific religious wars in Maluku and parts of Sulawesi. Egypt, too, could face religious conflict as Sidel suggests. But Sidel is wrong to see “many parallels” between the war in Maluku, which was as much about cultural clashes between economic migrants and longstanding residents as it was about faith, and the recent killing of Coptic protesters by Egypt’s military during a protest outside the state TV building in Cairo.

The nature of communal religious tensions between Christians and Muslims in Egypt is far different from those in Indonesia, which is also a dramatically more religious and culturally diverse place. Exhibit A might be Abdurrahman Wahid, Habibie’s successor. Mr. Wahid was the hereditary head of a mass organization called the Nahdlatul Ulama, or roughly “The Revival of Muslim scholars.” His National Awakening Party won 12.5 percent of the vote in the first post-Soeharto elections, making it the biggest “Islamist” party in Parliament (compare that to Egypt, where the Muslim Brotherhood is the single largest party in Parliament, with about 48 percent of the seats).

But Sidel suggests that Wahid’s success parallels the Egyptian experience so far. But Mr. Wahid is a brand of “Islamist” that almost no one in Egypt would recognize. He was a long term defender of religious pluralism, the right of Muslims to convert to other faiths (most Brotherhood members would be uncomfortable with this). He made a habit of meditating and communing with the Javanese spirits for guidance (the average Brother’s discomfort would shoot to horror at this point) and he once told eminent Indonesianist William Liddle that his favorite book was My Name is Asher Lev, Chaim Potok‘s allegory about a descendant of a long line of rabbis struggling to reconcile modernity and faith. Potok is not generally found on Brotherhood reading lists.

Sidel concludes his piece by suggesting that Egypt could very well follow the footsteps of Indonesia, which has prospered mightily since the fall of Soeharto, and forged a much more open and responsive political culture than had ever been possible there. Let’s hope he’s right. But Indonesia, with its dramatically different culture, economic standing, and results in early elections, teaches us nothing about what’s coming next in Egypt.

Source : www.csmonitor.com

But you do not have to believe in the Chinese zodiac to know that Southeast Asia is likely to have a tumultuous year. In 2012, Southeast Asia faces the prospect of increased economic uncertainty generated by the macroeconomic difficulties of advanced countries (particularly Europe, but also the United States and Japan) as well as the likelihood of a further slowdown in China. Not only are the Southeast Asian economies among the most open to trade and financial flows in the world, they are also tightly integrated through production networks with China, and via China with US and European markets. Openness to trade and finance has brought immeasurable benefits to Southeast Asian economies — but that openness now makes them vulnerable to the actions of others.

Southeast Asian leaders should be worried. There is a significant probability that Europe, Southeast Asia’s largest trading partner, will go into recession in 2012 — and that is if things go relatively well. The trade implications are well known, but may be underestimated — especially if a European recession snuffs out a tentative recovery in the US. Financial repercussions are more difficult to anticipate. Global financial markets have become so tightly integrated that a sudden increase in demand for liquidity following any unpleasant shock or surprise in Europe could easily translate into a capital reversal on the other side of the world.

Over the course of the last two years, the liquidity injected into the global financial system by the European Central Bank and the US Federal Reserve quickly found its way to the shores of Southeast Asia in search of higher returns. These flows could just as easily reverse direction. This is a phenomenon Southeast Asia has seen three times in recent memory — prior to the Asian financial crisis, then following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008 and (to a lesser extent) toward the end of last year. If it were to happen again, the shock to liquidity, interest rates and exchange rates — and ultimately investment and growth — could prove difficult to manage. Indonesia has always been the most vulnerable in this regard, given the large share of short-term financial assets owned by non-residents, although this time around Thailand and Malaysia are also exposed.

China’s slowdown and rebalancing toward domestic sources of growth add another layer of uncertainty for Southeast Asia. China’s GDP is two-and-a-half times that of Southeast Asia and it is now the world’s second-largest importer. A misstep by Chinese policy makers as they seek to engineer a soft landing, or unanticipated consequences as the gradual real appreciation of the renminbi works its way through relative prices into the balance sheets of enterprises and banks, will have consequences that could easily spill over into Southeast Asia.

Most Southeast Asian economies are less well positioned to handle the economic uncertainties and surprises of 2012 than they were when the global financial crisis hit in 2008. True, inflation is on the wane, external reserves are plentiful and growth is resilient. But most Southeast Asian countries are running out of fiscal space, and this will limit public policy options to boost domestic demand in the event of yet another global slowdown. Moreover, there are serious doubts that China will once again come to the rescue with an outsized stimulus package, given that the government there is still cleaning up the mess left behind from the last one. Finally, with the exception of Singapore, Southeast Asian economies are dependent to varying degrees on commodity and natural resource exports, and commodity prices are likely to be particularly volatile this coming year.

Of course, each country in Southeast Asia is positioned differently. At one extreme is Indonesia, which has the most policy options available, given strong growth (6.4 per cent in 2011), low government and external debt burdens and a small fiscal deficit. At the other extreme is Vietnam, which suffers from periodic bouts of macroeconomic instability (inflation exceeded 18 per cent in 2011), continues to run high external current account and fiscal deficits, has a large state enterprise sector in desperate need of reform, and is now suffering from a rising number of unofficial labour strikes.

In between are the remaining economies of Southeast Asia, each with its own strengths and vulnerabilities: Thailand, where growth is going to climb from its nadir in 2011 as the economy rebuilds after last year’s devastating floods; Malaysia, where an expansionary budget in anticipation of an election year is expected to maintain growth at close to last year’s rate; Cambodia and Laos, which continue to be propelled by their abundance of natural resources (including hydro-power) and rapidly growing markets in their neighbourhood, notably China and Vietnam; and finally, Singapore and Brunei, Southeast Asia’s small but wealthy states, the former driven by the power of trade, innovation and high-end services, the latter by the power of oil.

Differently positioned though they may be, the Southeast Asian economies will certainly face shared challenges as 2012 unfolds. They will be keeping an anxious eye on Europe and the US as the year brings either a tentative and sputtering recovery or yet another recession. Either way, Southeast Asian policymakers should be prepared for a testing time ahead. .

Vikram Nehru is Senior Associate in the Asia Program and Bakrie Chair in Southeast Asian Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Paet brought along with him an Estonian business delegation, as talks on expanding trade and investment partnerships between Indonesia and Estonia were high on the agenda of his four-day visit. This is the first official visit made by an Estonian top envoy to Indonesia since the countries opened mutual diplomatic relations in 1993.

Paet himself called it a “historical visit”. Marty said the Estonian minister’s visit was a follow-up to their meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York in September last year, during which they declared a commitment to enhancing their countries’ bilateral relations. Paet has brought Estonian business representatives from the sectors of logistics, infrastructure, maritime security, border management and healthcare, among others.

He said he had also been scheduled to meet with Indonesian Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro and Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih. “So far there is still a lot of untapped potential in relations between Indonesia and Estonia,” Paet said in a joint press conference with Marty.

Marty said they also discussed in detail pending agreements on protection from double taxation, investment, economy and free visa arrangements for diplomatic passport holders. Paet said he was looking forward to signing those agreements to protect Estonian businesses in Indonesia.

Two-way trade between Indonesia and Estonia has been showing a positive trend in the past couple of years, with the total trade value for the January-October 2011 period standing at US$29.8 million, a 54.7 percent increase from $19.27 million in the same period of 2010. Indonesia enjoyed a surplus of $27.33 million in the January-October 2011 period, with its main export commodities including animal and plant fats, paper and paperboard, and wood and wooden products.

“We can still enhance the figures. There are plenty of places to enhance our cooperation,” Marty said. The two ministers also discussed cooperation in the field of education.

The Indonesian Foreign Ministry said in a press statement that the two countries were exploring partnerships between Indonesian and Estonian higher education institutions.

Paet specifically invited Indonesian cyber experts to further learn of cyber security and cyber defense in Estonia, in which he said the country was experienced. He added Indonesia and Bali were becoming popular among Estonians as tourist destinations.

Paet arrived in Jakarta on Monday and was scheduled to leave Indonesia on Thursday. He is joined by Finnish European Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister Alexander Stubb and a Finnish business delegation in the visit.

News Source: The Jakarta Post

Pada tahun-tahun 1950an sebelum masa Konfrontasi Indonesia- Malaysia, hubungan rakyat di kedua negeri serumpun ini sangat erat; banyak orang Indonesia menikmati lagu-lagu dari Malaysia misalnya yang di dendangkan Cek Ramli almarhum. Film hitam putih dari Malaysia juga diminiati di Indonesia. Sebaliknya juga banyak orang Malaysia juga mengagumi lagu dan film dari Indonesia, termasuk karya para pujangga masa lalu. Film hitam putih dari kedua negeri ini hampir tidak ada bedanya karena bahasa Melayu yang di percakapkan di film itu sama dengan bahasa Indonesia.

Masa Konfrontasi tahun 1960an memang sempat memisahkan rakyat kedua negara, namun bisa dipulihkan lagi setelah Indonesia mengalami coup d’état Partai Komunis Indonesia.

Dewasa ini diakui dari segi informasi memang sudah tidak ada sekatan lagi, orang-orang Malaysia bisa melihat TV-TV Indonesia, lagu-lagu Indonesia baik yang popular maupun dangdut juga digemari di Malaysia. Sampai-sampai ada protes dari sebagian orang Malaysia sendiri di KL terhadap stasiun-stasiun radio yang mendedangkan terus menerus lagu-lagu Indonesia yang menjadikan para pendengar radio itu seperti berada di Jakarta.

Akan tetapi bagi sebagian orang Indonesia ada persepsi yang beranggapan bahwa tetangga kita Malaysia terlalu “Ke – Inggris-Ingrisan” (atau memiliki British’ mindset), lebih tahu London, atau Piccadilly Circus, atau English Garden, atau Fish and Chip. Tentu hal itu tidak benar. Dulu Dr. Mahathir mengeluarkan policy “Look East Policy” yang mengharapkan rakyat Malaysia lebih melihat timur seperti Jepang dan Korea dari pada selalu melihat barat (dalam hal ini Inggris). Orang Indonesia tidak lagi merasa melihat Malaysia seperti jamannya Cek Ramli dulu. Tentangga serumpun ini seperti tetangga lain; yang dibacanya dari media adalah soal Tenaga Kerja Indonesia yang disiksa majikan, atau diminta membayar uang pelicin bagi polisi yang menangkapnya. Atau soal teroris dari Malaysia yang mencari tempat operasi di Indonesia.

Yang perlu dipahami bahwa Indonesia ini dalam sejarahnya adalah negara yang mengalami penjajahan asing ratusan tahun (di jajah Belanda 350 tahun, Inggris 5 tahun, Portugis 5 tahun dan Jepang 3,5 tahun). Perasaan nasionalisme sangat tinggi, setiap kali mendengar kata “Asing” maka akan menjadi perdebatan yang serius. Misalnya ekonomi Indonesia di kuasai Asing, budaya Indonesia ter-kontaminasi Asing, demonstrasi yang dibiayai Asing dsb. Karena itu ketika ada berita soal lagu rasa sayang2e di anggap milik Malaysia, maka itu menjadi berita besar.

Bagi sebagian orang Malaysia, Indonesia dianggap sebagai sebagai negara yang demokrasinya belebihan, berita tentang perkelahian antar desa, antar etnis dan agama. Tenaga Kerja yang berkerja di Malaysia yang selalu buat masalah kriminal. Indonesia seakan bukan tetangga serumpun lagi – tapi tentangga Asing yang terlalu sensitive dalam banyak hal.

Tidak banyak yang tahu kalau banyak Tenaga Kerja Indonesia yang ikut menyumbangkan tenaganya membangun Kuala Lumpur, membangun Petronas Twin Tower, tidak banyak yang tahu bahwa banyak pengusaha Indonesia yang berbisnis di Malaysia, sedikit yang tahu kalau banyak dosen Indonesia yang mengajar di berbagai perguruan tinggi di Malaysia, atau olahragawan Indonesia yang melatih di Malaysia dsb.

Sebaliknya, tidak banyak yang tahu juga di Indonesia kalau beberapa Bank di Indonesia di beli Bank Malaysia, kebun-kebun Kelapa Sawit di Sumatra dan Kalimantan banyak yang dikelola pengusaha Malaysia, para pengusaha Malaysia banyak membeli produk –produk di Jakarta, Bandung, Surabaya, Medan dan kota-kota lainnya.

Nampaknya, masing-masing pihak harus mengerti dan memahami sensitivitas dan karakter kedua negara serumpun ini. Harus ada upaya yang lebih baik untuk mendekatkan kedua masyarakatnya. Tidak boleh ada yang merasa lebih tinggi dari yang lain. Semua pihak juga harus memahami bahwa “We actually have the same DNA” tapi “We have different historical background”.

Kalau tidak dipahami hal itu, maka walaupun Malaysia itu negara serumpun terdekat dengan Indonesia, tapi sepertinya jauh…!

Alumni University of London dan Universitas Airlangga Surabaya, sekarang dosen di STIE PERBANAS Surabaya.

Membaca buku kumpulan tulisan Liew Chin Tong anggota parlemen muda Penang Malaysia yang berjudul: “Speaking for the REFORMASI GENERATION” saya ingat kondisi Indonesia semasa Orde Baru dulu. Pak Chin Tong – begitu saya menyebutnya menulis tentang hiruk pikuk politik di negeri Jiran dengan segala dinamikanya persis yang pernah kita alami di Indonesia pada masa lalu. Misalnya dia menulisL “we were a generation growing up without knowing any other Prime Minister except Dr Mahathir “. Di negeri kita dulu anak-anak muda generasi tahun 66 sampai 90 an – selama 36 tahun mengalami seperti yang dialami politisi muda Malaysia ini yakni tumbuh sebagai generasi yang hanya tahu presidennya cuma satu yaitu Suharto-selain itu tidak ada.

Pak Chin Tong juga menulis “In the kampung, the headman is also UMNO branch chairman. His wife is typically the branch wanita chief and occasionally, his son the youth chief…In typical Kampung, the village head cum UMNO branch chairman would know everyone by name; his wife may even know the names of the villagers’ cats”. Saya membacanya kalimat –kalimat itu sambil tertawa karena ingat persis jaman Orde Baru dulu dimana semua kepala desa, bupati walikota dan gubernur berasal dari satu partai yang berkuasa, seperti juga yang ditulis Pak Tong, disini juga kepala desa adalah ketua partai berkuasa, istrinya ketua perkumpulan wanita partai itu dan anaknya ketua organisasi pemuda partai itu. Kalau Pak Tong menulis – bahwa kepala kampung itu mengetahui nama-nama orang dibawah kekuasaannya bahkan istrinya bisa tahu nama-nama kucing penduduk, maka di Indonesia dulu kita ingat bahwa pohon-pohon di alun-alun dan diseluruh kota pun di cat dengan warna bendera partai politik yang berkuasa.

Syukur Alhamduilllah, kita di Indonesia sudah meninggalkan kondisi seperti itu sementara teman-teman kita di negeri jiran masih mengalaminya. Dinamika politik di negeri itu sangat mirip dengan yang terjadi di Indonesia dimana lawan-lawan politiknya di singkirkan dan dipenjara seperti yang dialami Datuk Anwar Ibrahim. Kita bersyukur bahwa se-jahat2nya polisi kita dalam era keterbukaan ini tidak pernah memukul babak belur seorang pimpinan nomor dua di negeri yang dipenjara. Sementara Datuk Anwar Ibrahim beberapa tahun yang lalu pernah di pukuli bertubi-tubi oleh kepala polisi sampai kedua matanya merah biru. Kita bersyukur bahwa era diktatorisme di negeri ini sudah berlalu dan kita bisa bernafas lega untuk menatap Indonesia yang lebih maju kedepannya.

Saya sendiri bertemu dengan Pak Chin Tong bersama penulis Malyasia terkenal Karim Raslan (seorang pecinta Indonesia) bulan 20 Desember 2011 yang lalu. Saya dan Akhyar Hananto (penggagas goodnewsfromindonesia ini) berdiskusi dengan dia tentang Pesantren, tentang NU dan Muhammadiyah, tentang politik Indonesia, tentang media dan ekonomi Indonesia dan Jawa Timur. Saya kenalkan dia dengan kolega saya Pak Aribowo Dekan Fakultas Ilmu Budaya Universitas Airlangga yang juga pengamat politik. Saya perhatikan Pak Chin Tong ini adalah anggota DPRD Penang yang sangat aktif dan mau belajar banyak dari pengalaman Indonesia. Dia sangat menyimak betul penjelasan Pak Aribowo tentang voting behavior di Indonesia, tentang swing voters, tentang pilkada, tentang partai politik dsb.

Pak Chin Tong ini adalah anggota parlemen dari DAP – Democratic Action Party. Partainya itu berkoalisi dengan PAS – partai Islam di Malaysia dan PKR – Partai Keadilan Rakyat yang didirikan Datuk Anwar Ibrahim. Ketiga partai ini berupaya memenangkan Pemilu raya di Malaysia dengan menggeser UMNO partai yang berkuasa saat ini. Pak Chin Tong ini sangat mengagumi Datuk Anwar Ibrahim dengan sering mendengarkan pidato politiknya dimana-mana. Ketiga partai koalisi ini bermaksud mengusung Datuk Anwar Ibrahim menjadi Perdana Menteri Malaysia. Dan Pak Chin Tong mengakui bahwa dia banyak belajar dari Reformasi yang terjadi di Indonesia yang sampai menumbangkan Suharto.

Dalam wawancaranya dengan wartawan Jawa Pos setelah di bebaskan dari tuduhan kasus sodomi, Datuk Anwar Ibrahim berjanji bahwa kalau dia menjadi Perdana Menteri Malaysia dia akan menampilkan Malaysia yang tidak arogan terhadap Indonesia sebagai negeri jiran yang terdekat. Bagi kita siapapun yang akan memimpin Malaysia, maka sikap arogan tidak boleh dikedepankan terhadap negara yang serumpun ini. Kalau tidak, meskipun sama-sama memiliki akar budaya dan bahasa yang sama, akan tetap menjadi tetangga yang asing.

Semoga, Pak Chin Tong kawan baru saya ini mendapat pelajaran yang menarik dari negeri kita dengan mengambil mana-mana yang baik untuk demokrasi yang akan terjadi di Malaysia.

Penulis adalah alumni of University of London dan Universitas Airlangga Surabaya, sekarang dosen di STIE PERBANAS Surabaya.

Foto dari website Liew Chin Tong dan Anwar Ibrahim.

“The office, located in the MUI (Indonesian Ulema Council) Building, Central Jakarta, will be inaugurated concurrently with the opening ceremony of the WHFC annual meeting,” the Director of MUI Food and Drug Analysis Agency (LPPOM) Lukmanul Hakim said in a release received here, Thursday.

Indonesia as a world’s halal food center is supported by some international halal certification agencies such as those in United States, France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Australia, Taiwan and Singapore.Last year, Coordinating Minister of Economy Hatta Rajasa has signed the declaration that established Jakarta as the head office of the World’s Halal Food Council. and supports from the international keeps coming to Indonesia.

Lukman said the annual meeting of WHFC in Jakarta would be a great and strategic momentum for Indonesia as a country which had the largest number of halal products consumers.With a great number of Muslim consumers and the various industries of food, beverages, medicines, and cosmetics, Indonesia should be a leader in the world’s halal products competition,” Lukman said.

The Annual General Meeting of WHFC will be held in Jakarta on January 16-18 and will be opened by Indonesian Vice President Boediono. The meeting will be attended by Ambassadors and commercial attaches from other countries, observers, directors of halal product industries, and at least 25 world’s halal certification agencies.

The agenda of the meeting would be a discussion on the work program, standardization, socialization, and education of halal products all around the world. WHFC was established in 1999 in Indonesia and Prof. Aisjah Girindra was elected as its president.

On June 23 2011, members of WHFC agreed to reactivate the WHFC and elected Lukmanul Hakim as its president as well as Jakarta as its headquarters.

News Source: Kompas

Retno Marsudi said after her swearing in on Wednesday that she would use the best of local cuisine to enhance the relationship between the two countries, antaranews.com reported.

Culinary diplomacy would also improve the Indonesian economy, Retno added.

Several other Indonesian embassies have also held culinary festivals to promote traditional dishes.

In Dubai, for example, a cooking demonstration in Grand Millennium Hotel featured gado-gado, karedok and urap as appetizers with a main course of tongseng kambing (lamb curry in soy sauce), ikan bumbu pesmol (fried fish in yellow sauce), fried rice and fried noodles.

Martabak asin egg pancakes, bubur sumsum (coconut rice pudding with palm sugar syrup) and es cendol (drink made from rice flour served with coconut milk, palm sugar and ice cubes) were served as desert.

Further, the Indonesian Embassy in Moscow cooperated with the Association of Russian Gastronomic Observers to hold a garden party where dabu-dabu from North Sulawesi was served.

The order is commonly awarded to Norwegian citizens living abroad, Norwegian diplomats and foreign civil servants in Norway, among others, for “outstanding service in the interests of Norway”, and it is the first time it will be awarded to an Indonesian diplomat.

Norwegian Ambassador to Indonesia Eivind Homme is scheduled to grant the order in a ceremony at his residence in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, on Thursday evening, the Norwegian Embassy in Jakarta said in a statement sent to The Jakarta Post.
Retno served as the Indonesian ambassador to Norway between 2005 and 2009, and had earlier worked for Indonesian embassies in Australia and the Netherlands.

Lawmakers have approved her appointment as the new Indonesian ambassador to the Netherlands. The assignment is pending her inauguration by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The Robotic Organizing Committee Indonesia (ROCI) founder and chairman Santoso Gondowidjojo said that Indonesia would exhibit more than 200 robots at the event.

“Although this is the first time that Indonesia will host the Olympiad, robots created by young Indonesians have already been recognized at global robot competitions in the past few years,” Santoso said on Wednesday as quoted by tempo.com.

No hassle: A group of vocational school students show their creation Floor Cleaning Machines 2K11, a robot that could automatically sweep floors in this photo file taken on Sept. 24, 2011. Indonesia will host the 13th International Robot Olympiad (IRO) at Tarumanegara University in Jakarta from Thursday to Sunday. (Antara/Eric Ireng)

He said that Indonesia had managed to bring home a gold medal in the junior creative robot category as well as one bronze medal, one special award and seven technical awards at last year’s IRO in Australia.

Themed as “robots for helping people in natural disasters,” the Olympiad will have 14 categories, such as non-programmed line tracers, non-programmed racing, prison break robots and transporters.

The event spokeswoman, Lolita Zusye, said that there would be two new categories, energy saving robots in relation to the impact of greenhouse gases and environmental preservation, and robots as media promotions of Indonesian culture in the international arena.

Apart from the robot competition, there will also be an exhibition showcasing robotic technology innovations as well as the International Symposium on Robot Education for technology and design observers.

Delegates to the Bali Democracy Forum are a motley crew: the meeting held recently brought together representatives from over 80 countries and hundreds of observers. The conference’s title ‘Enhancing Democratic Participation in a Changing World: Responding to Democratic Voices’ may not be catchy and some speeches were tedious. But the message from Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono remains unequivocal: Asian countries must match their economic success with democracy and political reform.

The focus this year was inevitably on the Arab Spring. The Indonesian president warned that based on his country’s experience, there were no quick fixes. “It is safe to assume that in the early years, things will be more difficult before it gets better … Democratic success has to be built, earned and improvised every step of the way. Indeed, elections are only one of
the tools of democracy and building a mature democracy takes a lot more than holding elections.”

Launched in 2008 to encourage discussion and exchange of views on democracy among Asian countries, annual meetings of the Bali Democracy Forum have become a potent exercise in Indonesian public diplomacy.

The Forum has grown in credibility and prestige over the years, spotlighting Indonesia’s democratic record since the fall of president Suharto in 1998, and the country’s increasingly vocal and visible aspirations to become Asia’s prime normative power and champion of political reform and democracy.

The message from Jakarta is strong and clear: Indonesia matters — in both Southeast Asian and on the global stage. The country’s new breed of gutsy and self-confident politicians and diplomats are breaking with the cautious approach of past administrations by working hard to give Indonesia a stronger regional and international voice.

Indonesia’s transformation from dictatorship to a modern and robust democracy in the past decade is no modest achievement — and through the annual meetings in Bali, Indonesia wants to spread the gospel of democracy.

Indonesia’s foreign policy ambitions are not new. The country has long been active on the regional and international foreign and security policy stage. However, President Yudhoyono, now serving his second and final term in office, has given a new boost to the reputation of Southeast Asia’s largest economy and most populous nation, successfully portraying it as one of Asia’s most exciting countries with constructive contributions to make. Helped by men like former foreign minister Hassan Wirajuda, Indonesian diplomacy is now in full gear, its officials no longer content to watch from the sidelines as regional and world leaders step up engagement with China and India.

Mr Wirajuda, a gentle and affable man, tells me in Bali that Indonesia wants to share its experience with Arab countries in transition. “We can learn from each other’s mistakes,” he says. The focus has to be on social justice, on fighting corruption on not allowing a monopoly of power. “Governments have to be sensitive to the aspirations of the people,” he underlines.

Significantly, Turkey was also present at the Bali meeting.

Still, in the last few years, Indonesia has taken its place in the G20, become a force to be reckoned with in Asean and adopted a moderating role within the OIC. Jakarta’s efforts at fighting terrorism and radicalisation are watched carefully by its neighbours as well as the United States and the European Union.

Long-term prospects are bright. Indonesia’s economic growth rates — expected to remain around the six per cent mark in the near future — continue to impress. Demographics are excellent; 44 per cent of its population is under 24, meaning a growing workforce in years to come. Basic literacy rates are at 90 per cent (although education still needs a lot of investment). The country is resource-rich. It’s a major exporter of soft commodities such as palm oil, cocoa and coffee, as well as coal.

But it’s not just a geared play on commodities. The economy is mostly driven by domestic demand, with consumption accounting for around 60 per cent of GDP. Indonesia is also strategically located: half of world trade passes by its northern maritime border, giving the country a strategic role in ensuring safe and secure international navigation.

Small wonder then that US President Barack Obama, Chinese President Wen Jiabao, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard are among leaders who have recently trod the red carpet in Jakarta. The US and Australia are seeking to sign ambitious cooperation pacts aimed at enhancing ties with Indonesia, clearly seeing the country as a counterweight to China’s growing influence in the region. As the driving force behind many Asian regional integration initiatives, Indonesia is often held up as an example to be followed by neighbouring Myanmar, a role that Jakarta does not shun.

To fulfil its regional and global ambitions, however, Indonesia will have to put its domestic house in order. Indonesians tell me the country remains riddled by corruption and religious extremism is still a problem. Few doubt that Indonesia needs to make faster progress in addressing issues like freedom of expression, military reform, police brutality (especially in Papua), treatment in prisons and of minorities.

“We remain vigilant as Indonesia is not totally free from the prospect of new communal conflicts flaring up,” the Indonesian president told delegates at the Bali Forum, adding: “The more we guarantee human rights for our citizens, the more durable our democracy will become.” It is a lesson for many countries, not just those living through the so-called Arab Spring.

by Shada Islam

The writer is Dawn’s correspondent in Brussels.

Aerowisata, a subsidiary company of Garuda Indonesia, gained recognition for its commitment to enhance aspects in waste management, water treatment, conservation, efficient electricity usage, and better overall environmental development.
The certificate was presented by President Director of TUV Rheinland Indonesia, Muhammad Asana at Hanoman Garden, Sanur Beach Hotel, Bali on Tuesday, 15 November 2011, that was also attended by executive Vice President of Aerowisata Hotels & Resorts, Anton Pratono.

In his speech, Anton stated that the certification is an acknowledgement for Aerowisata hotels reducing negative impacts and preserving the environment, which are part of the Green program conducted by Garuda Indonesia. Furthermore, this achievement is hoped to attract more international tourists, especially from Europe, since Europeans are very concerned with preserving the earth.

TUV Rheinland is a global provider of technical, safety and certification services with as guiding principle the achieving of sustained development of safety and quality in order to meet the challenges arising from the interaction between man, technology and the environment.

“We are proud to announce that Aerowisata Hotels & resorts is the first hotel groups that received the ‘Eco Hotel’ certification from TUV Rheinland”, said Muhaman Asana, President Director of TUV Rheinlad Indonesia”. The Eco Hotel certification is valid for three years, and every three months an evaluation will be conducted” said Asana. If the standard is not met, then the certification will be withdrawn.

Nowadays, an eco-friendly hotel has become the priority for international tourists, especially from Europe. Thus, the certification becomes an important assurance of the ‘eco-friendliness’ of a hotel or accommodation.

“Aerowisata Hotels & Resorts are continuously conducting every effort to implement the environmental commitment through a series of training for the staff and encouraging our guests to support the ‘Eco Hotel’. As a result we have received this certification, which will benefit us in the promotion of our hotels, especially to visitors from Europe” said Anton.

General Manager of Sanur Beach Hotel, Francis Dehnhardt, expressed his gratitude to all the staff and employees for the achievement in gaining the ‘Eco Hotel’ certification. The process in gaining recognition has been on-going since the hotel was first established about 37 years ago. “Even though it took a big investment, the certification has helped us a lot in reducing operational costs and also impacted in a significant increase in occupation” Denhardt stated.

Along with the Sanur Beach Hotel, there are 5 other Aerowisata Hotels that also received the Eco Hotel Certification.These are: the Senggigi Beach Hotel in Lombok, the Grand Preanger Hotel in Bandung, the Labersa Grand Hotel & Convention Center in Pekanbaru, and the Aerotel Biak in Papua.

The award is granted to research that makes major contributions to science and technology.

The students are Kadarusman, who is currently studying at Paul Sabatier University in Toulouse, and Hananto Prakoso, who is studying at Paris Est-Creteil University in Paris.

“Their research is of a high quality and is innovative, offering clear solutions to Indonesia’s current biodiversity, transportation and economic problems,” AFIDES president Helen Schutzenberger said Thursday as quoted by kompas.com.

Kadarusman’s research is focussed on the Rainbow fish species that inhabits the Papua bird’s head area, while Hananto presented his analysis of the relationship between the labor market and the need to build better infrastructure.

Kecintaannya yang tulus pada Indonesia itulah yang menggugah batin saya. Kita tentu sering mengetahui banyak orang barat yang begitu dalam mempelajari Indonesia, namun saya ragu apakah mereka kemudian mencintai Indonesia dengan tulus.

Karim Raslan adalah seorang penulis terkemuka dan konsultan yang berbasis di Indonesia dan Malaysia. Beliau adalah satu dari sedikit ahli di bidang social, ekonomi, dan politik sekaligus, untuk regional Asia Tenggara. Beliau adalah pembicara di berbagai seminar tentang ASEAN (dan Asia) dan mempunyai kantor di Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Manila, dan Bangkok. Keahlian dan kapasitasnya yang memadai untuk urusan regional tersebut membawanya menjadi tamu di berbagai media cetak dan eletronik di Indonesia.

Di samping itu, Karim Raslan adalah seorang Indonesianist sejati dengan pengetahuan tentang sejarah, tokoh, social, ekonomi, politik, diplomasi Indonesia yang sangat mumpuni. Kebanyakan Indonesianist berasal dari Amerika Serikat, Australia dan Belanda. Namun Karim Raslan seorang keturunan Melayu Inggris dari Malaysia sebenarnya adalah seorang Indonesianist dari negeri yang terdekat dengan Indonesia. Pengetahuan Karim Raslan mengenai Indonesia barangkali lebih “baik” dibanding dengan para Indonesianist dari negeri barat, karena factor kedekatan geografis dan keturunan Melayunya yang membuat dia memiliki ke Indonesiaannya lebih dari para Indonesianist barat. Jangan-jangan, pengetahuannya tentang Indonesia..melebihi kebanyakan orang Indonesia sendiri, Saking cintanya terhadap Indonesia, Karim secara rutin berkunjung ke pulau-pulau di nusantara ini dan malahan memiliki rumah di Jakarta dan Bali. Tulisan-tulisan Karim banyak berisi kekaguman dia tentang diaspora persoalan-persoalan di Indonesia. Karim juga secara rutin menulis artikel di berbagai harian nasional dan majalah terkemuka di Indonesia.

Salah satu bukunya mengenai Indonesia berjudul “Ceritalah : Indonesia” yang berisi kumpulan tulisan-tulisannya tentang Indonesia sejak 10 tahun terakhir. Dari tulisan2-nya, kita bisa diselami betapa murninya kecintaan Karim Raslan akan Indonesia, dan betapa pengetahuannya tentang Indonesia digalinya berdasarkan kecintaannya tersebut. Salah satu bukti nyata kecintaannya pada Indonesia adalah, dia pernah menyelenggarakan seminar interaktif di London, dan dia sebagai pembicaranya, yang bertema “Indonesia in the Asian Century:
Opportunities and Challenges”. Sesuatu yang mungkin tidak akan dilakukan oleh siapapun orang Indonesia dengan perencanaan sendiri.

Beliau mempunyai hubungan dekat dengan para tokoh-tokoh terkemuka di Asia Tenggara seperti mantan PM Thailand Abhisit Vejjajiva, Presiden Filipina Ninoy Aquino, para menteri, bupati, dan gubernur di Indonesia, dan tentu saja para pejabat tinggi di Malaysia dan Singapura. Pengetahuannya yang luas, pembawaannya yang santun serta kedekatannya dengan para jurnalis dan reporter media, menjadikannya leluasa untuk bergerak di ranah manapun di Indonesia. Ketika tensi hubungan Indonesia-Malaysia memanas, Karim Raslan-lah yang selalu dicari media di Indonesia sebagai “satu-satunya” orang Malaysia yang “tidak memihak”.

Saat ini, Indonesia adalah negara yang sedang mengalami “growing pain” yang cukup menyakitkan, sudah terjadi cukup lama, dan karena “menahan sakit” itu, ada satu hal penting yang terabaikan, yakni bagaimana tokoh-tokoh negeri ini engage dengan serius para tokoh-tokoh Asia Tenggara. Indonesia (dan negara-negara lain di ASEAN) sangat beruntung mempunyai Karim Raslan, yang mendedikasikan banyak waktunya untuk menjadikan desa besar bernama Asia Tenggara, kawasan yang maju secara ekonomi, bangga pada pencapaian2-nya, dan mengerti potensi-potensi yang belum tergali.

Asia Tenggara perlu 1000 orang lagi seperti Karim Raslan.