ORANGUTANS NEED IMMEDIATE PROTECTION by Fardah

   Jakarta, Aug 30, 2015 (Antara) - The world celebrated International Orangutan Day on August 19 to recognize the great ape and to help encourage the public to take action in preserving the endangered species.  
      This year's theme of the day was "Come play a role in saving and conserving orangutans!". 
    Indeed, there was nothing to celebrate on that day because according to information on www.worldorangutanevents.org , the population of the Sumatran orangutan is considered to have declined by more than 50 percent during the period of 1992-2000.

         The population of  Bornean orangutans found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei Darussalam, fell nearly 43 percent in the past decade, from 35,000 in 1996 to 20,000 in 2006.

         Since these studies were done, deforestation rates have continued to climb which means the actual populations could be well below these.

         The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), however, in its press release recently said an estimated 55,000 Bornean orangutans remain in the wild, split into three distinct subspecies.

INDONESIA REITERATES SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINE'S BID FOR INDEPENDENCE By Fardah

Jakarta, Aug 29, 2015 (Antara) -- Palestine is always mentioned in every state of the nation address delivered by Indonesia's President to commemorate Indonesia's Independence anniversary celebrated on August 17.

        In his state of the nation address delivered at the Parliament Building on August 14, President Joko Widodo reiterated the country's support for Palestine's independence.

        "Indonesia continues to support Palestinian independence from colonialism and injustice, and urges its Muslim brothers in the Middle East to make peace for the sake of the ukhuwah Islamiyah (Islamic brotherhood)," the head of state noted.

        The support for Palestinian independence is in accordance with Indonesia's 1945 Constitution that mandates the nation to "contribute to the implementation of a world order based on freedom, lasting peace and social justice."
   The Preamble of the Indonesian Constitution among other things states, "Whereas independence is the inalienable right of all nations, and therefore, colonialism in the world must be abolished, because it is not in accordance with humanity and justice."

INDONESIA ENJOYS SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN CHINESE TOURIST ARRIVALS by Fardah

Jakarta, Aug 28 , 2015 (Antara)- The Indonesian Government has been intensifying tourism promotion, providing visa-free facilities, and easing permits in a bid to attract 10 million tourists in 2015, and achieve US$12.05 billion in foreign exchange earnings from tourism by the end of this year.

         The government has provided visa-free facility among others to the citizens of China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, and Australia, which are the main markets for Indonesian tourism.

         The increase in the number of visa-free countries is also needed to achieve the target of 20 million foreign visitors, or 450 thousand additional foreign tourists per year, by 2019.

         Indonesia has been particularly targeting China, the world's most populous country, as a potential market for its tourism industry.

INDONESIA SEEKS CHINA'S COOPERATION TO STOP DRUG TRAFFICKING By Fardah

 Jakarta, Aug 28, 2015 (Antara) - Indonesian authorities have been grappling with the recent influx of illicit drugs, particularly crystal methamphetamine and ecstasy exported by illicit drug syndicates in Guangzhou, China, into Indonesia.  
   The Chief of the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), Anang Iskandar, has confirmed that Indonesia has become an important route and market for international drug syndicates in Asia.     
   "One of the biggest illicit drug producers is Guangzhou, in the province of Guangdong, China," Iskandar stated.

        BNN has identified the routes of international drug syndicates covering China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Western Africa, he said.  

SEPTEMBER IS MONTH OF FESTIVALS IN EAST NUSA TENGGARA By Fardah

 Jakarta, Aug 22, 2015 (Antara) - East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) will hold at least two festivals this September to attract domestic, as well as foreign tourists, to the province whose beautiful nature, particularly underwater wealth, remains hidden.

        The eastern Indonesian province will host the Alor Marine Festival from September 16 to 18, along with the Indonesian Adventure Festival on September 15-20, to publicize its tourist attractions, mainly promoting its nature and unique culture.  
     "Marine and adventure tourism attractions needs to be continuously promoted to make Indonesia a major tourist destination in the world. For that purpose, sustainable promotion that brings Indonesia to the world stage is necessary," Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said on Aug 20, 2015, when announcing plans to hold the festivals.

GOVERNMENT REAFFIRMS MARITIME AS MAIN DEVELOPMENT SECTOR by Fardah

   Jakarta, Aug 21, 2015 (Antara)- Indonesia is one of the world's largest maritime countries, with some 5.8 million square kilometers of sea territory, while its land territory covers only 1.9 million square kilometers.

        It's coastline is some 92 thousand kilometers long, making it the second-longest after Canada.

        The country is the largest archipelagic nation in the world, as around 70 percent of its total territory is water, and it has 17,480 islands.

        President Joko Widodo, who is determined to develop Indonesia as a global maritime axis, believes that the clusters of islands and vast waters in Indonesia could be used as one of the main axis for advancing the country.      
   The head of state also emphasized that the nation needs to promote its maritime identity and culture in line with its vision to become the global maritime axis.