Day: August 16, 2022

The Ternate Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas/SAR), North Maluku, celebrated the 77th anniversary of Indonesia’s Independence Day by raising the Red and White Flag under the sea at Jikomalamo Beach.

“As many as 10 divers from the Ternate SAR dove ‘raised’ the Red and White flag at a depth of nine meters in the waters of the Jikomalamo beach tourist attraction of Ternate,” Head of Ternate Basarnas Fathur Rahman noted here, Tuesday.

He explained that the flag was raised and the national anthem “Indonesia Raya” was sung under the sea, while the divers also saluted the flag.

According to Rahman, this activity conveyed a message of strongly-felt national unity and was expected to be an example.

He affirmed that Jikomalamo Beach was selected as the location for the underwater flag ceremony, as the place is safe and is one of the mainstay tourist attractions of Ternate City.

Rahman noted that the well-maintained ecosystem and beauty of Jikomalamo Beach is a tourism asset that generates income for the local government.

The underwater flag ceremony was conducted solemnly. The drivers then returned to the surface after the ceremony was over.

Meanwhile, in enlivening the commemoration of the 77th anniversary of Independence Day, the North Maluku provincial government symbolically distributed Red and White flags, as part of the nationwide 10 million Red and White flag movement.

North Maluku Regional Secretary, Samsudin Abdul Kadir, stated that red and white flags were specifically targeted for distribution to several motor rickshaw drivers (bentor), motorcycle taxi drivers (ojek), and the public.

Kadir said his side headed to the streets to distribute hundreds of red and white flags as a step to raise love for the flag as a state identity while building a spirit of respect for the national emblem.

Source: Antara News

The text of the original proclamation of independence written by national founder and first president Soekarno will be showcased at the Merdeka Palace during Indonesia’s Independence Day ceremony on August 17.

The Presidential Secretariat received the original proclamation text from the National Archives of Indonesia (ANRI) on Tuesday, and it will be on display along with the red-and-white heirloom flag.

“This is the third year of the Presidential Secretariat’s cooperation with ANRI to present and display the original proclamation text with the heirloom flag at Merdeka Palace during the Indonesian Independence commemoration ceremony in 2022,” Presidential Secretariat’s Administration Bureau Head, Sony Kartiko, stated here, Tuesday.

Kartiko noted that ANRI had assessed the conditions of the room expected to host the display at the Merdeka Palace to ensure no harm to the national relic.

“Praise be to God, prerequisites have been fulfilled for the room at the palace to serve as the temporary display area for the proclamation text,” he noted.

The Presidential Secretariat also participated in ANRI’s annual risk assessment process to ensure the national relic will be preserved in good condition for future generations, the department head affirmed.

Kartiko noted that the Presidential Secretariat would return the proclamation text to the National Archives on Thursday (August 18).

“We, representing the Presidential Secretariat leadership, express our utmost gratitude to ANRI’s support and cooperation for this event,” he remarked.

Meanwhile, ANRI Chairperson Imam Gunarto also lauded all parties that partook in the process to display the original proclamation text during Independence Day at the Merdeka Palace.

“To continue what we have done in the preceding years, the ANRI, the Presidential Secretariat, and the State Secretariat have together prepared the national heirloom delivery ceremony, and the original proclamation text written by Soekarno will also be displayed during the 77th anniversary of Indonesia’s Independence,” Gunarto stated.

Source: Antara News

Some 119 climbers prepared to conduct a ceremony commemorating the 77th Anniversary of Indonesian Independence atop Mount Arjuno located on the border of Batu City, Malang, and Pasuruan, East Java.

The climbers departed from the Cangar Hot Spring in Batu City to conduct the Independence Day ceremony atop Mt. Arjuno that stands 3,339 meters above sea level.

“Some 119 climbers are dispatched from Sumber Brantas. Tomorrow, a ceremony will be held at the top of Mount Arjuno,” Head of the Raden Soerjo Forest Park, Ahmad Wahyudi, revealed in Batu City, Tuesday.

Wahyudi explained that the climbers, who are members of the East Java Expedition Team 77, comprised members of the nature admirers community, Raden Soerjo Forest Park volunteers, Saka Wanabakti Scouts, East Java Provincial Forestry Office, students of Surabaya State University, and women climbers’ community Perempuan Pendaki.

“About seven components are participating in this activity,” he said.

On Tuesday, the East Java Expedition Team 77 departed from Sumber Brantas in Bumiaji Sub-district, Batu City, and would spend the night at Kotak Field, Mount Arjuno.

“All have departed through Sumber Brantas. Tonight, they will rest at Kotak Field, and tomorrow at 5 a.m. local time, they will scale to the top,” Wahyudi revealed.

The climbers will continue their journey to the mountain’s summit the next day, August 17, 2022.

After scaling to the top, they would conduct the Independence Day ceremony and raise 77 Red and White Flags.

“This expedition is the first (of its kind to hold a) ceremony at the top of Mt. Arjuno since the COVID-19 (pandemic),” Wahyudi affirmed.

He noted that the team also planted 77 seedlings of mountain cypress trees in the Sumber Brantas area.

Source: Antara News

Indonesian police confiscated 101,355 ecstasy pills, smuggled from Malaysia to Indonesia’s Riau province, via a small port, and arrested two suspects.

The West Jakarta Police Chief, Senior Commissioner Pasma Royce, said yesterday that, the ecstasy pills entered Riau in early Aug, based on information from a drug user in Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta.

“The pills will be taken to Jakarta for distribution to places like nightclubs,” Royce said.

Police also confiscated about 72.86 grams of crystal methamphetamine ready for distribution.

Investigations are still underway to find the main actors and map out the target area of circulation of the drugs, according to the police chief.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK