67th ANNIVERSARY OF INDEPENDENCE OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA CELEBRATED
To mark the 67th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Indonesia “HUT RI-Ke-67”, the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Belgrade, Indonesian Community in Serbia, and members of the Board of the Association of Serbian-Indonesian Friendship “Nusantara” celebrated the national holiday “in the spirit of proclamation, 17 August 1945, with the motto: working hard for the common progress – increasing the distribution of the achieved results for the social justice of the people of Indonesia”. Indonesian flag raising ceremony and the Indonesian national anthem were performed in the Embassy yard on August 17th.
Additionally, on the occasion of the Independence Day of Indonesia, Ambassador of The Republic of Indonesia in Belgrade H. E. Semuel Samson hosted a diplomatic reception at the hotel “Hyatt Regency” on September 7th 2012.
The formal reception was attended by the President of the Republic of Serbia, H. E. Tomislav Nikolic, president of the National Assembly H. E. Nebojsa Stefanovic, as well as by the representatives of public administration, diplomatic corps, social and cultural organizations, church dignitaries, businessmen, media representatives, many friends, and the representatives of the Association of Serbian-Indonesian Friendship “Nusantara”.
Especially for this occasion, the Serbian anthem “Boze pravde” and Indonesian anthem “Indonesia Raya” were sung by “Indonesian Children-Youth Choir CORDANA” (Paduan Suara Anak Indonesia) from Jakarta and Serbian Choir “Moderato Cantabile” of the Music School “Davorin Jenko” from Belgrade, which is a collective member of the Association of Serbian-Indonesian Friendship “Nusantara”. The conductor was professor Slavica Markovic Smiljanic, also a member of “Nusantara” Association.
Following the anthems of the two countries, Ambassador Samson, in his welcoming speech, reminded that friendship between Serbia and Indonesia had been strong ever since the time of president Sukarno and president Tito, and that 56 years ago Indonesia opened its first diplomatic office in Belgrade. He also pointed out that bilateral relations between the two countries continued to develop and that it would also be the case in the future. The ambassador said that two countries have very good cooperation in many fields, especially in politics, military industry and culture. Samson thanked President Nikolic for his presence and congratulated him and all members of the new Serbian government and parliament on winning the elections, and expressed confidence that “new leadership would make many improvements that would be very useful for a better life and prosperity of the people of Serbia”.
Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic wished happiness and prosperity to the people of Indonesia, pointing out that he was greatly honoured to attend the celebration of this important Indonesia holiday. “I wish happiness to your people and your country in the centuries to come, in the centuries that the Serbian people and all citizens of Serbia will live in freedom and hopefully in prosperity in which your country has lived for so long”, said the President.
The artistic part of the program included the performance of Gamelan orchestra, which included members of the Serbian-Indonesian Friendship “Nusantara” Marko Jelic, Zarko Vidakovic, Nebojsa Pavlovic and Boris Vančev and members of gamelan orchestra of the Embassy of Indonesia in Belgrade, Mirjana Jankovic Mirjana Sukiban, Dyanih Mahesthi, Sinisa Grudic and Boris Jelocnik, who played traditional Javanese songs all the time during the reception as an expression of welcome. The guests enjoyed the performance of traditional Indonesian dance and were entertained by a jazz band “Indro Hardjodikoro” which performed in Belgrade restaurant “Guarana” the night before.
This year’s reception attracted considerable media attention. TANJUG news agency covered this event: