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Indonesia Youth Foundation started friendly diplomacy with Peace and Public Diplomacy Corps Via
Indonesia – Korea Youth Friendship Forum
INDONESIA| Covid-19 is an issue that has been frequently discussed ever since the end of last year. Several domestic and international sectors have been hampered by this Pandemic, including Indonesia’s tourism sector.
Various elements discuss the right solution in dealing with this, such as the government or community organizations that help the government solve multiple problems to study them more intensively.
Many youths are quite irritated by the Pandemic’s various obstacles; the youth’s role has not been spared in solving everyday problems.
The Indonesia-Korea Youth Friendship Forum (IKYFF 2020) was a platform for individuals to exchange ideas regarding finding methods to build their respective country’s image amidst a global crisis.
The event was initiated by the Indonesia Youth Foundation in collaboration with the Peace and Public Diplomacy Corps (PPDC) and supported by Hanshin University and the Korea Democracy Foundation.
This virtual forum was held from 22-23 November 2020 via Zoom Meeting, with over 120 Indonesian and South Korean youths participating.
Indonesia Youth Foundation is a non-governmental organization, founded on July 23, 2020, engaged in public diplomacy to spread knowledge regarding Indonesia and bridge friendship with the international World.
This forum was the first event for the Indonesia Youth Foundation in carrying out its vision and mission, namely to Associate People, Spreading Insights, and Unlocking in the World.
Covid-19 Pandemic that continually causes countries to lose their image, IKYFF concentrated on the theme of “How to brand your country in the middle of a global crisis.”
The first day of IKYFF was a sharing session given by experts from South Korea and Indonesia; Chang-Beom Kim (Former Korean Ambassador to Indonesia since 2018), Professor Yi Kiho (Executive Director of the Center of Peace and Public Integrity, Hanshin University), and Miss Adelia Surya Pratiwi (Economist of the Fiscal Policy Agency at the Ministry of Finance, Indonesia) respectively.
In his speech, Mr. Kim highlighted that “Youth is the main backbone of society in providing a middle ground for all opinion-making processes and leading the nation in a coherent direction.“
He believed that Indonesia could enhance its image in the World by creating an ‘identity of the country the way South Korea did with K-Pop and K-Drama.
During his session, Professor Yi Kiho illustrated the current situation of Covid-19 in South Korea. Accordingly, the pandemic divided society into four categories;
- The Remotes – People who can work as well during Covid-19.
- The Essentials – Those who had work harder than before.
- The Unpaid – those who lost their jobs.
- The Forgotten – (helpless individuals such as orphans, immigrants, homeless, etc.
However, he also stated that Korea is doing better than many other countries due to the values emphasized by the government, namely openness, transparency, and democratic values.
Miss Adelia Surya Pratiwi presented some insightful information on Indonesia’s economy during Covid-19. It showed that the unemployment statistic had been increasing during March 2020 in Indonesia.
“Pandemic creates a recession. We have to utilize the potential and have to address that. That is the policy for 2021. Everybody should look into and ask people for being the buyers and innovators,” she said.
Miss Adelia also mentioned the Omnibus Law, one of the Indonesian government’s recently released policies to solve the crisis. “Omnibus Law is something we are waiting for; how to accommodate the job, it has an idea that economy increases the competitiveness in the country.
We need a job. Foreign investment is all way; we can discuss to go beyond our capacity. Foreign investment is the key now.”
On the other hand, the second day of the forum centered around exchanging ideas between 4 representative teams of students from both countries. Each group presented a discussion on the topics of culture, tourism, and economy, as follows:
- “Common Future; suggestion for the world economy in 2020” by Jung Hyemin (The member of PPDC and student of Seoul National University) and Kim Jinseo (The member of PPDC and student of Daegu Catholic University).
- “Korea Tourism Industry Under Covid-19 Crisis” by Yim Dabin (President of PPDC and post-graduate student of Seoul National University) and Oh GyeongJin (The member of PPDC and post-graduate student of Dongguk University).
- “Digital Opportunities amid Global Crisis” by Claudya Grace (The business and management student of Prasetiya Mulya University) also Jessica Puspa (The international business student of Bina Nusantara University).
- “Bridging The Past and The Future: Showcasing Indonesia’s Cultural Heritage Through Virtual Tourism” by Hanun Thalia also Theresia Magdanela Theofhanny (The psychology student of Universitas Indonesia).
IKYFF is hoped to be the match that ignites positive friendship between Indonesian and Korean youth in appreciating the culture and working together in world development.
This hope is in line with what Jung Hyemin, 1st South Korean student presenter, had expressed in his presentation. “We have to move forward together towards a common future without leaving anyone behind.
Korea and Indonesia must take the lead in sharing ideas about a common future and strive to create a cooperative economic community in Asia,” he said.
Dabin Yim, the President of PPDC, also hopes that Indonesia and Korea’s relationship can be mutually sustainable to make both countries better.
“I hope we can meet in person at the next forum in Seoul or Jakarta. I look forward to the participants who are present. That’s why we can share stories more closely.
“Dabin added. Even in the middle of the COVID-19 Pandemic, IYF with PPDC will continually try to maintain the bond between youths; we hope to hold another Indonesia-Korea Friendship Forum in the future.
