French cultural connection with RI spans many years<\/p>\n
The discovery of a treasure trove of paintings in 1991, buried
\nunder a mound of dust in a store room at Indonesia's National
\nMuseum, acted as a tangible reminder of the long history of
\ncultural ties between France and Indonesia.<\/p>\n
The works, originally donated by French and Paris-based
\nartists for an exhibition in Jakarta in 1959, were painstakingly
\nrestored by a French husband-and-wife curating team for the
\nParis-Jakarta exposition in December 1992. A mesmerizing
\ncollection of paintings and drawings by such art luminaries as
\nWassily Kandinksky, Hans Arp, Sonia Delaunay and Henri Cueco
\nreturned to its rightful place on Jakarta gallery walls.<\/p>\n
France's cultural ties with Indonesia date back to the years
\nwhen the fledgling Southeast Asian republic took its first steps
\non the world political stage. These relations have grown in
\nrecent years and have not been restricted to the arts. The French
\ngovernment actively promotes exchange of information and
\nknowledge through educational and training programs in science
\nand technology.<\/p>\n
\"One of my personal policies is mutual discovery,\" says French
\nAmbassador to Indonesia Dominique Girard. \"We are trying to
\ndevelop this through various means. Indonesia is not known enough
\nin France and French people still have some cliches about this
\ncountry.\"<\/p>\n
The arts<\/p>\n
On the artistic front, French cultural events are organized by
\nfour French cultural centers located in Jakarta, Bandung,
\nSurabaya and Yogyakarta. The centers hold French-language
\nclasses, screen French film weeks, arrange for performances by
\nFrench artists and provide information on various facets of
\nFrench culture.<\/p>\n
There are also 11 Alliance Francaise centers in cities across
\nIndonesia which are administered under the auspices of the
\nIndonesian government.<\/p>\n
\"Our cultural centers are among the most active and we bring
\nartists of all kinds here,\" Ambassador Girard notes, citing the
\nrecent visit of a mime artist and the performance of a French
\ntroupe in an Indonesian shadow puppet evening.<\/p>\n
Indonesia also attempts to foster a greater cultural
\nunderstanding by sending dance troupes, musical groups and
\ncultural shows, including painting exhibitions, to French shores.<\/p>\n
Education<\/p>\n
Since the 1970s, France has maintained a strong cooperation
\nprogram in education and training for Indonesian students.<\/p>\n
There are currently 350 Indonesian students in France, with
\nmost electing to study science and technology.<\/p>\n
Ambassador Girard emphasizes that importance is placed on
\ntraining qualified and skilled individuals, not sheer numbers of
\nstudents who study in France.<\/p>\n
\"We want to keep to this policy of training people. It is not
\nnumbers that are important but producing quality people to work
\nin various sectors.\"<\/p>\n
Indonesia and France also conduct mutual cooperation programs
\nin agriculture, forestry, oceanography and family planning
\nassistance. The oceanography project was first launched in 1980
\nand the French government provided three research vessels in
\n1989.<\/p>\n
France's International Cooperation in Agricultural Research
\nDevelopment signed contracts with the Indonesian government in
\n1993 to cooperate in forest management and preservation and
\nagricultural research.<\/p>\n
Cooperation is also evident on the diplomatic level. France
\nand Indonesia were instrumental in effecting the peace process in
\nCambodia through the signing of the Paris Agreement in 1991.
\nFrench and Indonesian troops worked side-by-side last year in the
\nUnited Nations peace-keeping units in Cambodia, an operation
\nAmbassador Girard describes as \"fairly successful and efficient.\"<\/p>\n
As France celebrates its National Day today, Ambassador Girard
\nis looking ahead to ways of increasing awareness about Indonesia
\nduring the Southeast Asian nation's 50th independence anniversary
\ncelebrations next year.<\/p>\n
\"France is involved in many projects in Indonesia but we are
\nnot very visible, and the same is true of Indonesia in France,\"
\nhe says. \"We have planned several activities for next year to
\nchange this situation.\"<\/p>\n
These articles were written by Bruce J. Emond<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/french-cultural-connection-with-ri-spans-many-years-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }