The summit is expected to boost cooperation among the nations of Asia and Africa, according to Hassan.

Indonesia is gearing up for an Asian-African Summit (AAS) later this month, with 55 heads of state expected to show up for the gathering that is hoped to boost cooperation between the two continents.

Dubbed as one of the biggest meetings of this century and a success in terms of both substance and administrative arrangements, the summit is set for April 22-23 in Jakarta, according to The Jakarta Post.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirajuda was quoted by the paper as saying Monday, April 4, that foreign affairs ministers from Asia and Africa have already drafted a declaration on strategic partnership that will be signed by heads of state or government during the summit.

The summit was expected to boost cooperation among the nations of Asia and Africa as well as among countries of the southern hemisphere, according to Hassan.

“We hope the outcomes of the summit will make a contribution to the international community, and also lift the image of the country in global forums,” he told a press conference after a Cabinet meeting late last week.

The summit is also expected to issue a statement on a tsunami early warning system for countries around the Indian Ocean, according to Hassan.

“Efforts to set up a tsunami early warning system (around the Indian Ocean) have been discussed. But political momentum is necessary for an agreement.”

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, said more than 236,002 people have been confirmed dead or missing in the tidal waves triggered by a 9.0 magnitude underwater earthquake last December 26 – the world’s biggest earthquake in 40 years.

On Thursday, March 10, a summit meeting of the Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable Development kicked off in Indonesia discuss promoting sustainable development in developing countries, especially in the killer tsunami-affected South Asia.

Encompassing an area that is almost half of the world, Asia and Africa are home to 4.6 billion people, or 73 percent of the world’s population. The combined Gross Domestic Product of the two continents amounts to US$9.3 trillion.

Activists’ Summit

Meanwhile, a number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) said it will hold a series of conferences to commemorate the golden jubilee of the Asian-African summit, to protest the government banning them from the event, the Jakarta Post reported Tuesday, April 5.

Bonnie Setiawan, a member of the NGOs coalition, said that the planned conferences would discuss “important issues that have been neglected by the government”.

“Local and foreign participants will discuss, among other things, poverty and interfaith issues,” said the director of the Institute for Global Justice (IGJ).

The conferences, to be hosted by several NGOs in Jakarta, Bandung, Garut and Yogyakarta, will start before the summit on April 22 in Jakarta.

The NGOs also plan to stage rallies outside the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), where the summit will be held.

The NGOs accused the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of being secretive for not involving them in the summit.

No Disturbances

This comes as the Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs said the government was determined to ensure that the summit would run “in an orderly manner, safely, and without any disturbances”.

But he refused to give details of security arrangements for the summit.

As many as 55 heads of state or government have confirmed their attendance at the summit, the paper said, adding that representatives from 105 countries, including 70 heads of state or government from Asia and Africa, have been invited to attend.

A statement of ministers will also be issued, consisting of a plan of action for the partnership, and contain details of the declaration by the heads of state or government.

NAM

In addition to the Asian and African states, delegations from 25 members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) on other continents will also attend the golden jubilee celebrations of the 1955 Asia-Africa Conference in Bandung, West Java, on April 24.

The Asia-Africa Conference was held in Bandung from April 18 to April 24, 1955, on the invitation of the Prime Ministers of Burma (now Myanmar), Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), India, Indonesia and Pakistan.

Twenty-four countries, including five current members of ASEAN, took part.

The Conference inspired a global peace effort through a loose grouping that became known as the Non-Aligned Movement, as well as the Group of 77.

The outcome of the 1955 Summit, called the Ten Principles of Bandung, is touted by Indonesia as having served as a “code of conduct” governing relations between the two continents.

Meanwhile, Indonesian State Secretary Yusril Ihza Mahendra announced that the administrative arrangements—such as accommodation and infrastructure construction—have been completed for the summit.

“The delegations will stay in five-star hotels such as the Hilton, Mulia, Hyatt and JW Marriott,” he said.

Yusril added that the government was considering giving a day off for students in Jakarta on April 21, which is the arrival date of the foreign delegations in Jakarta.

April 22, which falls on a Friday, is a public holiday, while April 23 falls on Saturday, the paper said.

The delegates would arrive here either through the International Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Tangerang, or the Halim Perdanakusuma airbase in East Jakarta, he said.