Australian Muslims to visit Indonesia

JAKARTA: A group of Australians are visiting Indonesia under the Australia-Indonesia Institute's (AII) Muslim exchange program, the Australian Embassy said in a release.

Bayram Aktepe, the manager of Housing Projects in the Victorian Department of Justice, his wife Meryam Apak, a lawyer and an associate public defender at the Legal Aid Victoria, Darren Azziz Cooper, project manager of the Muslim Prisoner Chaplaincy Services in Victoria, and his wife Ruth Rasheeda, the secretary of the Islamic Women's Welfare Council of Victoria, are the first Australians to visit Indonesia under the program.

During their two-week stay here between Sept. 5 and Sept. 19, the couples will meet a range of Islamic leaders, as well as interfaith ethnic and community welfare groups in Jakarta and Yogyakarta.

Established in 2002, the program involves young Muslim leaders from both countries and aims to build links between Muslim communities and to promote greater understanding about Islam in Australia and Indonesia.

The exchanges are organized by the University of Melbourne and the Australian National University, in conjunction with Indonesian and Australian Islamic groups.

During the first year of the exchange, 11 Indonesians visited Melbourne and Canberra. A further 12 young Indonesians will travel to Australia either later this year or early next year. -- JP