Special Events
10 June 2021
Government Briefing and Hand Over of Joint Policy Recommendations
On Thursday, 10 June 2021, the Indonesia-Korea New Southern Policy Young Professionals Lab delegation visited the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to officially hand over and discuss the Joint Policy Recommendations of the policy lab, which was held on 24-25 May 2021. The delegation of ten young rising Indonesian professionals was led by Dr. Dino Patti Djalal, Founder and Chairman of Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI), and received by Dr. Santo Darmosumarto, Director of East Asia and Pacific of Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The meeting took place in a less formal setting. The members of the delegation began the discussion by introducing themselves to Dr. Santo Darmosumarto. They then talked about the selection process and their experience during the two-days intensive program. Afterward, Dr. Dino Patti Djalal discussed the main purpose of the program and how the Joint Policy Recommendations created by the 10 Young Professionals may be used as a good reference for the Ministry to produce policies that shall strengthen ties with the Republic of Korea.
Equilibrium Tampubolon and Angelo Abil Wijaya then explained the Joint Policy Recommendations in detail. In their presentation, they informed that the recommendations are formulated against a backdrop of uncertainties in the international order due to an ongoing strategic rivalry between an established but declining superpower and a rising superpower, as well as the pressing cross-cutting global challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing misunderstanding and prejudice among peoples, climate change and unequal digitalization.
Further, the rest of the NSP Young Professionals presented the policy recommendations highlighted under the People, Prosperity, and Peace Pillars. Dr. Santo responded positively to the findings, inputs, and recommendations presented. Dr. Santo suggested a further dialogue between the NSP Young Professionals and Indonesian diplomats. He also encouraged the NSP Young Professionals to be actively involved in strengthening the Indonesia-Korea relations.
14 June 2021
Special University Lecture with FPCI Chapters DKI Jakarta
On Monday, 14 June 2021, Indonesia-Korea New Southern Policy Young Professionals Lab convened a Special University Lecture with FPCI Chapters DKI Jakarta entitled “Unravelling Paths for a Stronger New Southern Policy (NSP) Implementation After the Pandemic.” The Special University Lecture featured Agatha Lydia Natania, Yani Parasti Siregar, and I Gusti Bagus Dharma Agastia as the keynote speakers. One hundred and twenty-one students from seven universities in DKI Jakarta registered for the lecture.
Agatha Lydia Nathania began the forum by briefly explaining the policy lab program and the purpose of the Joint Policy Recommendations they disseminate. She then presented the policy recommendations from the People Pillar, focusing on the healthcare sector, capacity building, and people-to-people interactions. She stated that under the NSP, the two countries should ensure both citizens’ access to healthcare and encourage joint research in said sector to reduce dependency on medical supply. She also suggested an increase in scholarships and training in vocational skills to tackle issues related to youth unemployment. Lastly, she recommended the use of digital platforms to increase people-to-people interactions.
Yani Parasti Siregar then explained the recommendations under Prosperity Pillar. She proposed for the two countries to promote direct trade and investment, particularly in digital technology, clean energy, sustainable agriculture, and a creative economy. These sectors are chosen because digital technology and clean energy is becoming more essential in our daily lives. Meanwhile, sustainable agriculture and creative economy have become the sectors that help many mid to low-income communities, and people in the rural areas survive during the pandemic.
Afterward, Dharma Agastia briefed the students on the recommendations under the Peace Pillar. He proposed that the security cooperation under the NSP should be started through human resources development and focus on the maritime security sector. He also encouraged increased engagements under a framework such as security dialogue at the government-to-government level and the people-to-people level.
15 June 2021
Public Forum and Press Conference
On Tuesday, 15 June 2021, the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia convened a virtual public forum entitled “New Southern Policy for a Peaceful, Stable and Prosperous ASEAN Region.” The purpose of the public forum is to present the Joint Policy Recommendations and results of the Indonesia-Korea New Southern Policy Young Professionals Lab that was held successfully on 24-25 May 2021. The forum was opened by Dr. Dino Patti Djalal, Founder and Chairman of Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) and followed by the keynote presentation by H.E. Michael Tene, Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN Political-Security Community, and Prof. Choe Wongi, Head of Center for ASEAN-India Studies, Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA). The forum was moderated by Prof. Dewi Fortuna Anwar, Co-Founder of FPCI.
In his remark, Dr. Dino Patti Djalal said that Indonesia and South Korea had developed a strategic partnership. He noted that their relationship is a unique and important one because it is between two middle powers, which are democracies and have the same outlook on regional and global affairs. However, during the implementation, South Korea faced a few criticisms such as lack of focus, not being inclusive enough, and focusing too much on prosperity. In this context, the New Southern Policy Young Professionals Lab is aimed to assess the implementation of the policy and provide recommendations to address such challenges.
H.E. Michael Tene stated that in terms of NSP and regional components, the three pillars of NSP correspond well with ASEAN’s Community Pillars. In terms of peace, the Republic of Korea and ASEAN shared objectives in some hotspots in our region, like Korean Peninsula and the South China Sea. He also noted that the Korean Government has always been a strong supporter of ASEAN centrality and ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific – the latest regional policy that was issued by ASEAN. In the people-to-people context, since NSP was launched, there is a significant increase in people-to-people and educational exchanges before the pandemic. Korea and ASEAN have been doing mutually beneficial cooperation in terms of promoting prosperity in various sectors.
Prof. Choe Wongi explained the main motivations for the NSP, which are diversification of focus from the Big Four to the ASEAN region; nurturing relations with ASEAN as an important partner to enlarging international support, and corresponding to ASEAN status as the fastest-growing economy. He then presented how the NSP has been evolved to NSP Plus by rearranging the priorities into seven sectors. He also mentioned the areas where the NSP can be further developed, for instance, the security pillar. In his assessment, Korea has been deliberately avoiding security traditional issues such as the South China Seas and focused more on non-traditional issues. He concluded his presentation with the prospects for NSP sustainability after President Moon’s administration.
Afterward, Equilibrium Tampubolon, Amalia Mastur, and Angelo Abil Wijaya shared their policy recommendations and strategies to address some of the challenges in Indonesia-Korea relations. Under the People Pillar, Equilibrium Tampubolon described the policy proposal that includes protection of Indonesians and Koreans, especially in the healthcare sector, an increase of meaningful people-to-people interactions, and revival in the tourism sector. He further highlights the importance of practical cooperation to produce tangible development.
Amalia Mastur then continued the presentation on the Prosperity Pillar. She noted that the recommendations are aimed to `build back better`and that this term should include jargon that could be adapted by the NSP. She also suggested two policy recommendations including promotion of investment and trade for economic recovery, as well as addressing knowledge and economic gap between the two countries.
Angelo Abil Wijaya then presented the policy recommendations under the Peace Pillar that include defense industry and technology cooperation, as well as cooperation among maritime law enforcement agencies. He then emphasizes the importance of peacebuilding and the promotion of democratic values and the rule of law at the grassroots level. The forum is concluded with a question and answer session with the press and general public—three hundred and eighty-three people registered for the forum.
16 June 2021
Special University Lecture with FPCI Chapters DI Yogyakarta
On Wednesday, 16 June 2021, Indonesia-Korea New Southern Policy Young Professionals Lab convened a Special University Lecture with FPCI Chapters DI Yogyakarta entitled “Unravelling Paths for a Stronger NSP Implementation After the Pandemic.” The Special University Lecture featured Nadia Caroline, Pamela Simamora, and Aristyo Rizka Darmawan as the keynote speakers. Ninety-seven students from three universities in Yogyakarta registered for the lecture.
Nadia Caroline began the forum by briefly explaining the New Southern Policy and the perspectives behind creating the pillars, namely People, Prosperity, and Peace. She also briefly explained the evolution of NSP until the announcement of the NSP Plus. She emphasized that Indonesian nationals are the second largest in terms of migrant workers in Korea, making the Peace Pillars' recommendations need special attention. She said that people-to-people relations still could be bolstered via means such as TV shows and other digital platforms despite the pandemic.
Pamela Simamora focuses her presentation on the realities we face in the sustainable sector. Before presenting the policy recommendations under the Prosperity Pillar, she noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected the economy, society, and environment. Therefore the NSP has to find balance in all three sectors because of this causality. She hopes through Indonesia-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IK-CEPA), Korean investment, especially in energy sustainability, IT, and digital infrastructure could increase.
Aristyo Rizka Darmawan, then presented the policy recommendations under Peace Pillar, explaining the importance of focusing not only on traditional but also non-traditional security issues. He claimed that both countries share the issue of illegal fishing. Both countries are also facing issues such as people smuggling, human trafficking, and more. Seeing this, Indonesia and Korea should reorient their strategic priorities through regional partnership implemented in practices of defense industry and technology cooperation, security dialogue, and capacity building program.