An Overview of Philippines-Indonesia Bilateral Relations
An Overview of Philippines-Indonesia Bilateral Relations
History shows that Philippine-Indonesian relations began as early as the pre-colonial times when trade, commerce, and transmigration flourished between our peoples. Over the centuries, a genuine sense of brotherhood between Filipinos and Indonesians developed through the movement of peoples, goods, and ideas between the two archipelagos. The deep roots of Philippine- Indonesian relations are evident not only in the similarity between Filipino, the national language of the Philippines, and Bahasa Indonesia but more so in shared values such as a high regard for family, religion, and tradition.
Diplomatic relations between the Philippines and Indonesia were established on 24 November 1949. On that date, the Philippine Legation in Jakarta, which later became the Philippine Embassy, opened to the public for business. A few months later, the Indonesian Embassy was established in Manila. The Philippines is currently represented in Indonesia by His Excellency Rafael E. Seguis.
Since 1949, the two countries have signed more than 30 bilateral agreements covering a wide range of areas of cooperation. These include the four bilateral agreements on the areas of tourism, fisheries, energy supply and development, and protection and promotion of investments signed during the state visit to Indonesia of Her Excellency President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in November 2001 as well as the memorandum of understanding concerning migrant workers signed in January 2003.
The Philippines and Indonesia have supported each other's interests and national goals. Indonesia played a crucial role in the conclusion of the peace agreement between the Philippine government and the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996, helping end more than two decades of armed confrontation. Indonesia continues to support the peace process in Southern Philippines in its capacity as chairman of the OIC Ministerial Committee of the Eight. After the 12 October 2002 bombings in Bali, the Philippines immediately deployed a medical team composed of burn experts on a humanitarian mission to Bali. Recently, the Philippines responded positively to the request for Philippine officers to work under the Joint Security Committee (JSC) in monitoring the implementation of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement in Aceh.
The two countries remain supportive of each other in various multilateral fora: e.g., the United Nations and its agencies, ASEAN, APEC, ARF, and ASEM, among other fora. The Philippines readily accepted Indonesia's invitation to be a member of the Southwest Pacific Dialogue, a new forum for discussions on regional issues and on possible sub-regional responses to present and future challenges.
In an increasingly globalized world, the Philippines and Indonesia have joined hands with other countries in addressing issues with domestic and international implications. In May 2002, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaysia signed the Agreement on Information Exchange and the Establishment of Communication Procedures aimed at facilitating cooperation on border and security incidents, terrorism, and other transnational crimes. Cambodia and Thailand later acceded to the Agreement. The bombings in Bali highlighted the need for intensified cooperation in the fight against terrorism and transnational crimes in the region, resulting in Manila's hosting of the Multilateral Simulation Exercise on Terrorism and Transnational Crimes and Jakarta's hosting of the ASEAN Workshop on Combating Terrorism in January 2003.
In the economic sphere, two-way trade between the Philippines and Indonesia amounted to US$946 million in 2002, reflecting a six percent increase from the 2001 figure of US$ 892 million. Philippine exports to Indonesia in 2002 reached US$201 million, consisting mainly of dairy products, semiconductor parts and accessories of motor vehicles and machineries. Philippine imports from Indonesia-mainly copper ores and concentrates, transport equipment, coal, petroleum products, and paper products-amounted to US$745 million. As of February 2003, there are 49 Philippine- Indonesian joint venture companies operating in Indonesia. These companies are involved in the production of food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, shoes, electronics, and furniture as well as in management consulting services.
Indonesia is also home to around 5,000 Filipino expatriates and their families. Many of the expatriates work as executives, managers, and technical consultants in local and multinational companies.
The Philippines is optimistic that Indonesia will remain a close and steadfast partner in the coming years. The Philippines will certainly do its utmost to ensure that the gains and inroads already achieved in the various areas of Philippines-Indonesia bilateral relations shall be enhanced for the mutual advancement of both countries. Imbued with common values and pursuing the same goals of growth and development, the Philippines and Indonesia can work together and achieve tremendous results for their future generations.