Day: March 21, 2022

No less than several thousand domestic spectators of the Pertamina Mandalika International Street Circuit, Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, have returned home after watching the Pertamina Grand Prix of the Indonesia (MotoGP) racing event.

Several spectators of the Mandalika MotoGP had arrived at the departure terminal of the Lombok International Airport.

Some Pertamina Grand Prix spectators, however, had to stay in the airport area since accommodations, such as in hotels, were full.

“I slept at the airport last night. There were no empty inns,” Ali, a visitor from Makassar, stated in Praya on Monday.

Ali and his friends had come to Lombok to watch the Pertamina Grand Prix event on Sunday morning. Ali stated that he would stay at the airport again, as his flight schedule was set for Tuesday.

“(We will) stay at the airport again. Let it be safe,” he stated.

Meanwhile, Budikarya, another spectator, noted that he and his family would return to their hometown on Monday. During the MotoGP event, he stayed at a homestay priced at Rp500 thousand per night.

Furthermore, a public relations staff of state airport operator PT Angkasa Pura I Lombok International Airport, Arif Haryanto, explained that the number of Indonesian Grand Prix spectators returning home had peaked on Monday, March 21, and the number of passengers was estimated to reach 11 thousand per day.

“During the MotoGP event, the movement of arriving and departing passengers have reached 14 thousand, with the number of flights reaching 136 flights per day,” Haryanto explained.

According to Haryanto, despite the increase in passenger mobility, there were still adequate facilities and waiting rooms that could accommodate up to 20 thousand passengers daily.

“There were no passengers (crowding) because the waiting rooms had been prepared adequately,” he stated.

Source: Antara News

Publisher rights regulation is not aimed at supporting anti-digital platform behavior, but rather creating a balanced and equal media system, the Indonesian Press Council has said.

“If there is a collaboration between the media, publishers, and (digital) platforms, maybe it would be mutually beneficial,” Chairman of the Commission for Inter-institutional and Foreign Relations of the Indonesian Press Council Agus Sudibyo said here on Monday.

Conventional mass media is responsible for distributing content and in case there are mistakes in news reporting, existing regulations such as the Press Law and the Broadcasting Law can help resolve them, he explained.

However, according to Sudibyo, the two laws have not been applied to global digital platforms.

“We also want the global platforms to be responsible for the content they share even if it is not them who create the content,” he said.

Publisher rights strive for equal responsibility between publishers and digital platforms, he added.

Furthermore, the regulation also stipulates that the two parties can establish cooperation to build quality, civilized, and ethical journalism and public spaces that are in accordance with the values of the Indonesian nation and Pancasila, he remarked.

“The most important thing is how this collaboration contributes to building good journalism, good content, civilized public spaces,” he explained.

A number of countries already have regulations that support journalistic media amid technological disruption, he said.

For instance, Australia has passed the News Media Bargaining Code, giving mass media companies the right to negotiate the price of journalistic content posted on global digital platforms.

“Publisher rights do not only exist in Indonesia, as it is becoming a global phenomenon. (Some) European countries, Australia, Canada, and others are also adopting (similar laws) based on their national (character),” Sudibyo said.

Source: Antara News

State-run electric company PT PLN (Persero) will sign several commitments related to the development of green energy in the Energy Transition Working Group (ETWG) in Yogyakarta on March 24-25, 2022.

PLN’s Corporate Communication and CSR Executive Vice President Agung Murdifi noted that the ETWG is unveiled as a part of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency.

“This presidency became very important for Indonesia as a global citizen that plays an important role in supporting clean energy and the world’s climate,” he noted in a statement on Monday.

The agreements that PLN will sign include the renewable power plant purchase agreement, signing of the green financing memorandum of understanding, and inking of renewable energy certificate purchasing, he noted.

The ETWG assembly is scheduled to be attended by 20 G20 member countries, 10 invited countries, and eight international organizations, both live and virtually.

Three issues to be discussed during the ETWG assembly in Yogyakarta are access, technology, and funding.

The primary discussion on energy access concerns creating an affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for everyone, especially concerning clean cooking and electrification.

Meanwhile, the technology-related priority issue to be discussed revolved around the effort to increase and utilize technology for the development of clean industry, renewable energy integration, and energy efficiency.

When it comes to the funding issue, Indonesia will encourage advanced nations to invest and fund various innovations for the development of renewable energy.

The G20 Energy Transition Forum comprises a series of meetings starting from the first ETWG assembly in Yogyakarta that will be held this week.

Next, the second ETWG will be held in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara, while its third, along with the Energy Transition Ministerial Meeting (ETMM), will be held in Bali.

Source: Antara News

Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo has forecast that global economic imbalance will continue this year owing to differences in the capability of countries in terms of recovering from COVID-19.

In 2021, the global economy showed imbalanced growth due to the pandemic, despite recording a relatively high increase of 5.7 percent.

“The problem is, this high global economy grew in two big countries, namely the United States and China, which, of course, become unbalanced,” Warjiyo said while speaking at Leader’s Insight, a public lecture organized by BI, here on Monday.

Next year, the global economy could grow 4.4 percent, he estimated.

The pattern of unbalanced global economic growth has been seen because developed countries can grow fast, while developing countries develop very slowly.

The BI Governor pointed out that developed countries can vaccinate their populations quickly, thus pouring out fiscal and monetary stimulus on a large scale.

“In developing countries, however, the capability is limited,” he noted.

In many developing countries, the capability to buy vaccines and implement measures to deal with the pandemic are limited, and even fiscal and monetary stimulus are limited, he added.

In addition, many developing countries, especially in Africa, are burdened.

Therefore, the global economic imbalance after the pandemic has served as the basis for the theme of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency, namely recovering stronger and recovering together, he stated.

Indonesia was elected to the G20 Presidency for 2022 during the G20 Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in November 2020.

The Group of 20 or G20 is an international forum that brings together the world’s major economies. Its members account for more than 80 percent of global GDP (gross domestic product), 75 percent of global trade, and 60 percent of the population of the planet.

Source: Antara News

Indonesia is trying to synchronize the interests of G20 members in presenting issues for discussion at the forum, according to Djatmiko Bris Witjaksono, the Trade Ministry’s Director General of International Trade Negotiation.

“Surely, in the common consensus, we conduct discussions and early identifications of issues which become common interests. So, they do not reflect only the interests of Indonesia nor a group of G20 members,” Witjaksono said while speaking at the Merdeka Barat Forum, held online on Monday.

The issues that will be highlighted during the G20 meetings organized by Indonesia are those that have been identified by Indonesia in cooperation with international organizations, and sectors where G20 members and invited countries have established cooperation.

“Hence, the six issues have been agreed upon,” he said, adding that the issues are very relevant to the current situation and can provide an impetus for the future.

“I think that’s a process that has been prevailing. We are continuing that legacy. Because the G20 has been in process from previous years. There are indeed issues that continue to be discussed because they are important in nature,” he said.

The issues concern World Trade Organization (WTO) reform, among other things, which has been discussed during the last five presidencies, with a consensus yet to be achieved.

For this year’s G20 Presidency themed “Recover Together Recover Stronger,” Indonesia is highlighting three sub-themes for the G20 Trade, Investment, and Industry Working Group (TIIWG).

The three sub-themes concern global health architecture, digital transformation, as well as green, new, and renewable energy.

Source: Antara News

The US Federal Reserve’s benchmark interest rate hikes have made it difficult for developing countries to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo has opined.

“Developing countries must overcome the impact of global growth, uncertainty, and the effect of the interest rate increases on capital flows,” Warjiyo said at the BI “Leader’s Insight” public lecture here on Monday.

In addition, the Fed’s benchmark interest rate hikes have also limited the ability of developing countries to formulate policies for encouraging economic growth, he highlighted.

Therefore, the normalization of monetary policy is one of the issues raised and discussed at the 2022 Indonesian G20 Presidency, he said.

According to Warjiyo, monetary policy normalization in developed countries should be well-calibrated, well planned, and well-communicated.

All of the efforts must be conducted so that the impact of policy normalization on the global economy and developing countries can be mitigated properly, he said.

Furthermore, policy normalization in developed countries has begun and is likely to be done faster than in other countries, he added.

“We have already seen that the Fed has started raising rates. We initially expected that there would be five hikes, but with the high inflation and rapid economic growth, it is likely the US central bank to (increase the benchmark interest rates) seven times, like this month,” Warjiyo said.

The hikes in interest rates by Fed would have an impact on global rate hikes and perceptions of global risk.

Hence, he said, policy normalization is presenting a challenge amid unbalanced economic growth in countries.

In addition to policy normalization, countries are facing other challenges, such as the prolonged impact of the pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, he added.

Source: Antara News

The no-quarantine policy has been expanded to all of Indonesia, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, Sandiaga Uno, said during a weekly press briefing here on Monday.

“Travelers only need to do PCR test,” he added.

The policy has been applied because of COVID-19 pandemic handling, which has been deemed to be more under control thanks to people’s compliance with stringent health protocols.

The COVID-19 handling task force’s circulation letter on the no-quarantine policy will be issued on March 22, 2022, at the latest, he informed.

In addition, the success of the no-quarantine trial in Bali, Batam, and Bintan, Riau Islands, has also served as the basis for the government’s decision to expand the policy to all of Indonesia.

In these three regions, the positivity rate is very low and the reproduction rate has also continued to decline.

“As a reminder for us all, testing and tracing should be bolstered once again,” the minister said.

“While antigen for traveling condition had been removed, as a form of surveillance, as a condition for close contact, this has to be strengthened,” he added.

The utilization of PeduliLindungi also needs to be increased considering that the use of the application has seen a downward trend in the last several weeks, he said.

During the press briefing, Uno also informed that people can freely carry out prayer activities during Ramadhan.

However, they should still implement the health protocols, which will be adjusted with the level of crowding in places of worship, and receive the complete dose of the vaccination as well as the booster shot.

“There will be a circulation letter and announcement for this,” the minister said.

“This means that alhamdullilah (praise be to God), we can do tarawih (a special prayer performed during Ramadhan) once again, and we can also break fast together with stringent health protocol, obviously,” he added.

Source: Antara News

The Indonesian Navy has launched two fast patrol ships (PC-60 M), Indonesian Vessel (KRI) Dorang-874 and KRI Bawal-875, built by a domestic corporation, demonstrating the independence of the defense industry.

The construction of the ships was in accordance with the determined strategic planning, which aimed to support the task of the Navy, Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff (Kasal), Admiral Yudo Margono, said at the shipyard of PT Caputra Mitra Sejati, Pulo Ampel sub-district, Serang district, Banten province, on Monday.

“The provision of the patrol vessels must also be supported by increasing the capabilities and professionalism of our soldiers to build a professional, modern, and tough Indonesian Navy,” he remarked.

Each ship measures 60 meters in length, 8.5 m in width, and 440–520 tons in weight, and can reach a maximum speed of 24 knots, a traveling speed of 17 knots, and an economical speed of 15 knots.

Furthermore, the two vessels can endure a 6-day journey and carry 46 personnel with additional 9 reserve personnel.

“This warship is also equipped with a 40-mm (millimeter) single barrel main cannon equipped with a tracking system, laser rangefinder, infrared camera, and day camera. It can be operated from the fire-control system. There are also two 12.7-mm cannons,” the navy chief of staff informed.

KRI Dorang-874 will be deployed to strengthen the patrol team of Ambon Naval Base (Lantamal IX), while KRI Bawal-875 will carry out patrol duties at Sorong Naval Base (Lantamal XlV).

The launching ceremony of the warships began with the general head of Jalasenastri, Mrs. Vero Yudo Margono, breaking a jug.

Jalasenastri is an association of the wives of Indonesian navy sailors.

The ceremony was continued by the cutting of the mooring rope and the handing over of miniatures of the ships.

After the inauguration of the ships, Margono and his entourage inspected the condition of the vessels.

Source: Antara News