IMO COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP REAFFIRMS INDONESIA'S ROLE AS LARGEST ARCHIPELAGIC NATION BY FARDAH

Jakarta, Nov 30, 2015 (Antara) - Indonesia's re-election as a  member of  the International Maritime Organization (IMO)'s Council is a reflection of the global body recognizing the country's role as the world's largest archipelagic nation.   
    As a nation located between the Indian and the Pacific Oceans, Indonesia has  affirmed its ambition to become one of the world's maritime axis.
         Having more than 17 thousand islands, Indonesia is the largest archipelagic nation in the world, with some 5.8 million square kilometers of sea territory, that forms about 70 percent of its total territory, while its land territory covers only 1.9 million square kilometers.
        It has a 92 thousand kilometers long coastline, making it the second-longest after Canada.

PROMOTE LOCAL FRUITS INTERNATIONALLY, URGES PRESIDENT JOKOWI by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 28, 2015 (Antara) - Bogor City is hosting the 2015 Nusantara Flower and Fruit Festival (FBBN) from November 27 to 29. It is being organized by the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB).  
   The theme for the third FBBN is "Revolution in Nusantara Fruits and Flowers Cultivation By Small and Medium Businesses for the Welfare of the Indonesian Nation."
   Various kinds of activities have been organized to mark the event, including a small and medium local fruit and flower business and investment forum, "Fruitpreneur got talent", an exposition, and a fruit and flowers bourse and bazaar, in addition to an oranges and mangoes contest, a carnival, and a fruit and flowers declaration by 48 district heads.

        "Through this festival, we wish to show that we have the potential, and the question is how to market it," President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) said in his opening remarks during the Nusantara Flower and Fruit Festival, organized at the IPB campus, Bogor, West Java, on Nov. 28.    
   President Jokowi lauded the initiative of the IPB to launch the Orange Revolution aimed at increasing the national fruit production, improve the fruit quality and maintain continuity in production.   

WAKATOBI WAVE INCLUDED IN ANNUAL CALENDAR OF TOURISM EVENTS by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 28, 2015 (Antara)- Coordinator Minister for Cultural and Human Development Puan  Maharani was in Wakatobi District in Southeast Sulawesi Province, for two days to officially open the Wakatobi Wonderful Festival and Expo (Wakatobi Wave) 2015 organized in Wangiwangi, the district's capital on Nov. 27.          Wakatobi Wave featured a cultural parade, a decorated boat contest, and various traditional dances portraying local culture, traditions, environmental wisdom and biological diversity.          "I felt amazed while enjoying the cultural parade. The participants who were dressed to depict as certain kinds of fish, and the expressions on their faces -- these really made them look like fish," she said in her opening remarks.          Local cultural and environmental wisdom must be preserved because these are assets to attract domestic as well as foreign tourists, she urged.          "Another thing which is also important in order to attract tourists is hospitality of the local community. Welcome tourists with smiles, so that they want to come back again one day," she said.

INDONESIA GEARS UP FOR SIMULTANEOUS REGIONAL HEAD ELECTIONS by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 27, 2015 (Antara)- Indonesia is gearing up for the first-ever simultaneous regional head elections (pilkada) to be held in some 53 percent of its districts and municipalities across the country on December 9, 2015.

        The pilkada 2015, which is the first stage of the simultaneous pilkada, is important as the people in 269 regions will be able to simultaneously and directly elect regional heads.

         More than 800 candidates will contest in the pilkada that will elect nine governors and vice governors, 224 district heads and their deputies, and 36 mayors and their deputies.

         Of the total participating regions, three have only a single candidate each: Blitar in East Java, Tasikmalaya in West Java, and North Timor Tengah in East Nusa Tenggara.

         The government has planned to use an e-voting system in the second stage of the pilkada to be organized in 2017 and in the legislative and presidential elections in 2019.

INDONESIA, VIETNAM PLEDGE TO ENHANCE TRADE, INVESTMENT COOPERATION by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 26, 2015 (Antara) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung have committed to nearly double bilateral trade turnover to US$10 billion by 2018, from some US$6 billion currently.

        The two leaders agreed to enhance relations between both nations, particularly in the fields of trade and investment, during a bilateral meeting held on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on November 22, 2015.

       "Indonesia's investment in Vietnam is also growing rapidly to reach almost US$500 million. We hope the Vietnamese government would pay attention," President Jokowi affirmed.

         According to Ari Dwipayana of Jokowi's presidential communications team, the president has also offered Indonesia's strategic products to Vietnam, and the offer was welcomed by Prime Minister Nguyen.

        Both Jokowi and Nguyen have also agreed to expedite negotiations on the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between the two countries.

INDONESIA, DENMARK STRENGTHEN COOPERATION IN MARITIME FIELD by Fardah

 Jakarta, Nov 25, 2015 (Antara)- Indonesia was very much honored for welcoming Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and her husband, Prince Henrik during the state visit on October 21 -24, 2015, which marked 65 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

         During the historic visit which was aimed at strengthening the ties between the two nations, the royal couple was accompanied on their tour by Foreign Minister Kristian Jensen, Energy, Utilities and Climate Minister Lars Christian Lilleholt, and a hundred representatives from 64 Danish companies involved in the maritime, agricultural, urban, clean-tech, design and lifestyle sectors.

         During their stay in Indonesia, the Queen and the Prince of Denmark visited  three cities - namely Jakarta, Surabaya (East Java) and Yogyakarta.      
    Denmark and Indonesia used the opportunity of the Queen's visit to strengthen cooperation in four business sectors - maritime, agribusiness, urban solution and renewable energy, as well as designs and lifestyle.

PRESIDENT JOKOWI PLEDGES TO STRENGTHEN BILATERAL TIES WITH JAPAN by Fardah

  Jakarta, Nov 24, 2015 (Antara) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) spent half the day on November 23, meeting some 1,100 Japanese guests in Jakarta at a reception held to celebrate Indonesian-Japanese partnership and demonstrate Indonesia's commitment to strengthening their friendship.

       The reception was organized just a day after Jokowi's bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit.

        "I dedicated half of the day on Monday to my honorable guests from Japan," the president said.
   The arrival of 1,100 Japanese guests in Indonesia, he said, showed how close the relationship between Indonesia and Japan is.

        Indonesia considers Japan a very important partner for development and maintaining regional peace and security.

INDONESIA INCHING CLOSER TO BECOMING GLOBAL ISLAMIC FASHION CAPITAL by Fardah

 Jakarta, Nov 23, 2015 (Antara) - Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim population, needs creativity to support its ambition to become a global Islamic fashion capital, particularly for Muslim women.  
  Indonesia has a population of over 250 million, of which 85 percent are Muslims.

       Increasingly more Indonesian Muslim women, including young girls, are opting to wear Islamic clothing as they are fashionable, decent, practical, comfortable, and alluring.

       Deputy Minister of Cooperatives and SMEs Emilia Suhaimi is even convinced that Indonesia deserves to become the global Islamic fashion capital by 2020. 
  "We know that Indonesia has been designated (to become) the world's Islamic fashion capital by 2020, and the country is nearing that target from time to time," Suhaimi said here on Monday.

        Besides being the largest Muslim populated country in the world,  Indonesia's Islamic culture is open to modernization, tolerance, pluralism and diversity, she added.

INDONESIA, CANADA VOW TO BOOST BILATERAL ECONOMIC TIES by Fardah

  Jakarta, Nov 24, 2015 (Antara) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have expressed their commitment to intensify cooperation in various fields, particularly in the economic field.

         The two held their first bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Turkey on November 15, 2015 where they committed themselves to such a strong relationship.

         "We want to strengthen the cooperation between Indonesia and Canada," President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) said after the bilateral meeting.

        "We want to strengthen relations with a country that has the world's largest Muslim population," the Canadian Prime Minister said.

        The trade balance between Indonesia and Canada reached US$2.6 billion in 2014.

        Cooperation in trade and investment between the two countries is wide open.

INDONESIA TO INTENSIFY PILGRIMAGE TOURISM PROMOTION ACTIVITIES by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 20, 2015 (Antara) - Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim population nation and also home to the followers of other religions, such as Christianity, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism.

       The country has a long history that dates back to the ancient kingdoms, which have left their monumental remnants, such as the Borobudur and Prambanan temples in Central Java.  
  Being multi-religion and multi-ethnic, Indonesia has several cultural attractions to offer to tourists, apart from its natural beauty.

       Bali is the country's most famous tourist destination, known for its beautiful beaches and unique Hindu culture and arts.

       The country also has several other destinations to offer to tourists keen to undertake pilgrimage visits, either to the followers of Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, or Confucianism, but most of the attractions are still not managed and promoted properly.    

INDONESIA STEPS UP SECURITY FOLLOWING PARIS TERROR ATTACKS by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 18, 2015 (Antara) - Paris may be thousands of miles away from Jakarta, but the terror attacks that hit the French capital on Nov 13, have pushed the Indonesian government to step up security to thwart any such terror acts.

         "We have asked the Commander and the TNI to be more alert and careful, and keep on protecting strategic assets or places such as airports and crowded areas," Vice President M Jusuf Kalla said at the Sultan Iskandar Muda Air Force Base, in Aceh Darussalam on Nov. 15.

         He said stepped-up security  measures around vital assets and border areas could minimize the entry of strangers wanting to commit terror activities in Indonesia.

         "In the border areas, too, if foreigners come, check them carefully. Because terror attacks like those (that happened) in Paris could happen anywhere in this world. Therefore, we must increase the level of alertness," he said.

S.E. SULAWESI PROMOTES TOURISM DURING ROYAL PALACE FESTIVAL by Fardah

 Jakarta, Nov 17, 2015 (Antara)- The Nusantara (Archipelago) Royal Palace Festival and the Third ASEAN Adat (Customary) Community Festival officially wrapped up in Kendari, the capital of Southeast Sulawesi, on November 14, following three days of festivities.

         The events, participated in by 143 kings, sultans or other royal family members, including from kingdoms in the Philippines, Pakistan, China, Singapore and Malaysia, was closed by the Southeast Sulawesi Administration¿s Provincial Secretary Lukman Abunawas.

        From Indonesia, the participants included sultans or kings and queens from the sultanates or kingdoms of Surakarta (Yogyakarta), Tabanan (Bali), Cirebon (West Java), Gorontalo, South Sumatra, Buton (Sultra) and Tidore (North Maluku).  

JAKARTA GOVERNOR AMENDS REGULATION ON RALLIES FOLLOWING NGO PROTESTS by Fardah

    Jakarta, Nov 12, 2015 (Antara) - Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (Ahok) has amended a gubernatorial regulation of 2015 governing freedom of expression in public following protests by some NGOs.

   Some of the NGOs that had protested were Kontras, Aji and an NGO coalition called PRJ (the Association of Jakarta Inhabitants).   
   The revision is meant to accommodate democracy in the capital city, Ahok said while announcing the revision in Jakarta on Nov. 11.

   On October 28, the Jakarta Governor had signed the regulation as he wanted protesters to behave in a more orderly manner.

   The Gubernatorial Regulation No. 228 of 2015 stipulates that protesters will be allowed to stage protests at just three venues: Senayan's Eastern Parking Area in the Bung Karno Sports Complex in Senayan, the Alun Alun Demokrasi (democracy plaza) located at the House of Representatives (DPR) complex, and at the Southern Cross located at the National Monument (Monas) Park in Central Jakarta.  
   The regulation also ruled that protests should be conducted at the three venues decided by the governor, between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. local time, and that the noise levels of the sound systems should not exceed 60 decibels.

INDONESIA INTENSIFIES FIGHT AGAINST DRUG TRAFFICKERS by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 11, 2015 (Antara) - Drug abuse, which has particularly poisoned several young men, is one of the two most serious threats being faced by Indonesia besides radicalism.

         Some 4.1 million Indonesians, mostly young people, or 2.2 percent of the country's population, are drug users. Around 40-45 Indonesians die daily as a result of drug addiction.

         Drug addiction will reduce the competitiveness of Indonesia's human resources in the long term and will even affect the nation's survival, Chief of the Indonesian Police Chief General Badrodin Haiti recently cautioned.

         Furthermore, illicit drug abuse has caused damages and losses worth Rp60 trillion annually in Indonesia, General Haiti affirmed.

         Immaterial losses and damages caused by illicit drug abuse amounted to Rp60 trillion per year, he reported.

VOLCANIC ERUPTION AFFECTS TOURISM IN BALI, WEST NUSA TENGGARA by Fardah

 Jakarta, Nov 11, 2015 (Antara)- Indonesia's tourism sector has again been affected by a natural disaster as its two most famous tourist destinations --- Bali Island and Lombok --- are incurring losses due to the eruption of Mount Barujari.

        Mount Barujari, a cone inside Mount Rinjani's large volcanic caldera located in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), has erupted since Nov. 3, leading to the closure of several airports in neighboring provinces.

        The volcanic ash had forced the authorities to shut down the Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar, Bali; the Blimbingsari Airport in Banyuwangi, East Java Province; the Selaparang Airport in Mataram; and the Lombok International Airport in Lombok, NTB. 
   The data from the Transportation Ministry revealed that at least 1,180 flights had been cancelled due to the volcanic ash until Nov. 7.

VOLCANIC ERUPTION FORCES CLOSURE OF AIRPORTS IN BALI, OTHER AREAS by Fardah

Jakarta, Nov 5, 2015 (Antara)- Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport, Lombok's Selaparang Airport in West Nusa Tenggara, and Banyuwangi's Blimbingsari Airport in East Java, among others, have been closed due to Mount Barujari's eruption in Lombok since Tuesday (November 3).         This is the second blow to Bali's tourism industry this year after the eruption of Mount Raung located in East Java, which had also forced the temporary closure of the Ngurah Rai airport in July.

"KUPANG MESSAGE" ENCOURAGES P2P CONTACT TO STRENGTEN MELANESIAN COLLABORATION by Fardah

 Jakarta, Nov 3, 2015 (Antara)- The first ever Melanesian Cultural Festival held in Indonesia yielded the "Kupang Message" that called for enhanced people-to-people contact to achieve better collaboration among the region's countries hosting Melanesian population.

         The Melanesian Cultural Festival was held in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, from October 27-30, 2015, to celebrate cultural pluralism in countries having Melanesian population. 
   The festival, hosted by Indonesia, was attended by delegates from New Caledonia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands  and Timor Leste.

        Themed "Celebrating the Cultural Diversity of the Melanesian World,"  the event was aimed at promoting cultural commonalities among South Pacific countries to further enhance cooperation in the region.

          "We will build upon the similarities to enhance collaboration among parties in the region," Cultural Director General at the Indonesian Education and Culture Ministry, Kacung Marijan, said while reading out the Kupang Message on October 28, 2015.

        The Kupang Message also stressed the importance of celebrating the diversity and unity of the Melanesian culture.