CATHERINE W GICHUKI DOHA
Members of the Indonesian community in Qatar celebrated their country’s 77th Independence Day on Wednesday. A colourful event held at the Embassy of Indonesia in Doha was attended by Indonesian Ambassador to Qatar HE Ridwan Hassan and community members.Indonesia’s founding fathers proclaimed the independence of Indonesia on August 17, 1945.The celebration started at 7am with a flag hoisting ceremony with the participation of Indonesian students in Qatar.Besides the flag hoisting ceremony, the event also saw Tumpeng Cutting. Tumpeng is an Indonesian cone-shaped rice dish, which symbolises the gratitude of Indonesian people for the blessing of independence.The ambassador also handed over trophies to community members who won in competitions held by the embassy to celebrate the Independence Day, such as bowling, badminton and table tennis.Speaking on the occasion, the envoy said that diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Qatar started in 1976. While Qatar opened its embassy in Jakarta in November 1997, Indonesia opened its embassy in Doha on June 22, 1999. “Over the years, Indonesia and Qatar have enjoyed cordial relations in various fields. Cooperation in the political field, for instance, has been manifested, among others, through cooperation on defence and the collaboration in the peacemaking process for Afghanistan,” he said.He added that, in terms of economic and trade cooperation, both countries share mutual partnership as the total bilateral trade between Qatar and Indonesia in 2021 reached $893 million. “Indonesia’s non-oil and gas exports were recorded at $217.2 million and imports amounted to $189.2 million, giving Indonesia a surplus of $28 million,” the envoy said.According to the ambassador, Indonesia’s oil and gas products from Qatar amounted to $486.5 million. “From January to May 2022, the total trade has increased by 27.14 percent to $514.5 million compared to the same period in 2021. Indonesia’s non-oil and gas exports were recorded at $100.6 million, raised by 51.2 percent, compared to the same period in 2021 and Indonesia’s imports have increased by 60.04 percent to $123.4 million compared to the same period in 2021. Overall, Indonesia experienced a trade deficit of $22.7 million,” he said.In the socio-cultural field, the cooperation between Indonesia and Qatar has entered a new phase with the selection of Indonesia as partner country for the Qatar Year of Culture in 2023. “Indonesia is the first Southeast Asia’s country to be selected as the partner country for that prestigious event. Next year, Indonesia and Qatar will jointly celebrate and appreciate their cultural relations through a year-long programme tagged ‘Qatar–Indonesia Year of Culture’. So, it’s time to collaborate stronger,” he said.Ambassador Hassan added that as Qatar hosts the FIFA World Cup this year, Indonesia will resume its presidency of the G20.
