June 12, 2001 - June 12, 2002
June 12, 2001 - June 12, 2002 A Year of Philippine-Indonesian friendship and cooperation
The Philippines and Indonesia have always enjoyed a deep friendship based on a sense of brotherhood as well as a sense of shared culture and history between Filipinos and Indonesians.
Since the establishment of official diplomatic relations on Nov. 24, 1949, the two countries have supported each other's interests and national goals at the bilateral, regional and multilateral levels.
Ties of friendship and cooperation were further strengthened in the past 12 months as both countries joined hands in their efforts to address their domestic concerns and face the many challenges brought about by today's changed global environment.
It was with great pleasure and honor that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo welcomed President Megawati Soekarnoputri after she chose the Philippines as the first stop in her tour of ASEAN countries in August 2001.
The two leaders discussed matters of mutual concern such as separatist issues, cooperation on transnational crimes, trade and investment, and the revitalization of the Brunei-Malaysia- Indonesia-Philippine East ASEAN Growth Area or the BIMP-EAGA.
Noting that their fathers, presidents Diosdado Macapagal and Sukarno, were like brothers, President Arroyo expressed a wish that she and President Megawati should be like sisters, supporting each other as they seek solutions to their nations' problems.
President Arroyo's state visit to Indonesia on Nov. 12-13 last year was of particular significance since the last state visit to Jakarta of a Philippine president was in 1993, during the term of President Fidel V. Ramos.
Presidents Arroyo and Megawati held bilateral consultations where they discussed substantive ways to enhance cooperation in the political, security and economic areas.
During the consultations, President Megawati gave her assurance that Indonesia would continue to support efforts toward peace and development in the Southern Philippines. Both leaders agreed to work on the proposal for ASEAN nations to share intelligence information on transnational crimes and to keep tighter control over their respective borders.
The Philippine president's visit to Indonesia also saw the signing of four government-to-government and 16 private sector agreements.
The government-to-government agreements, the culmination of months or years of bilateral negotiations, include an agreement on tourism cooperation, an agreement on fisheries cooperation, an agreement on the mutual promotion and protection of investments, and an agreement on the long-term supply of coal, oil and gas and geothermal energy development.
The private sector agreements cover a wide range of areas and include an agreement establishing the Indonesia-Philippines Business Council under the framework of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Much has been done to maintain the momentum brought about by this exchange of high-level visits. Through the determined efforts of their respective governments, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines were able to sign an Agreement on Information Exchange and the Establishment of Communications Procedures on May 7, 2002. The Agreement is seen to facilitate cooperation and interoperability among the three countries to address border and security incidents, terrorism and other transnational crimes. It has been hailed as an important step taken as part of these countries' commitment to combat terrorism.
On the part of the private sector, Filipino and Indonesian businessmen have been active in ensuring that agreements signed during the visit of President Arroyo are followed through.
Businessmen from both countries would undoubtedly be aided in their efforts by the Indonesia-Philippines Business Council, which was formally established on Feb. 19, 2002.
The Council sent a delegation to Manila in March 2002 to renew contacts made with members of President Arroyo's business delegation and establish new ones for possible business ventures in the future.
Members of the Council later met with Philippine Presidential Assistant for Mindanao, Jesus Dureza, for talks on business opportunities between Mindanao and provinces in Sulawesi, Kalimantan and eastern Indonesia.
The Philippines is looking forward to another year of fruitful and meaningful cooperation with Indonesia. The Philippines will do its utmost in ensuring that the gains and inroads already achieved in various fields of Philippine-Indonesian cooperation would not be wasted but instead be built upon for mutual advancement of the two countries.
As President Arroyo herself said after her visit to Indonesia, "Let us boldly step through these doorways and reach out across the seas for greater trade, warmer relations, mutual undertakings. This is the key to stability and security.
"This is the key to peace and development."