Indonesians urged to keep spirit of unity

An embassy official reads out the message of Ambassador Deddy Saiful Hadi. PICTURE: Najeer Feroke

By Joey Aguilar/Staff ReporterIndonesian embassy officials and community leaders in Doha have called upon their fellow countrymen to keep the “spirit of unity and togetherness burning” while celebrating their 68th Independence Day yesterday.Scores of Indonesians, including those from the labour sector and professionals working in the oil and gas companies, attended the programme in a simple gathering on the embassy premises.Muhammad Djamal, a senior member of the Indonesian community, reiterated the important role of the youth in commemorating what he described as a “historic moment” when they attained independence 68 years ago from their colonisers.“Hopefully by this celebration they will adopt the spirit of our grandfathers, the heroes who fought for our freedom,” said Djamal. As the country which has the largest number of Muslims in the world, he stressed that Indonesia respects other religious organisations in their country.Djamal’s statement was echoed by Sulaeman Nurjaman, the secretary-general of the Indonesian Community in Qatar known as Permiqa.He said the youth should understand fully what had happened in the past and remember the sacrifices of the people who died for their independence.“We want this to continue and we want to spread this to the young generation encouraging every one to be united,” added Nurjaman.In his message, Ambassador Deddy Saiful Hadi called on Indonesian expatriates  in Qatar to keep their country’s image as good citizens.He also urged them to follow the norms and abide by the laws set by the host country “in order to work in peace and comfort”.Hadi is currently in  Jakarta to taken part in the 2nd Congress of Indonesian Diaspora which is expected to start today and end on August 20. His message was read out by a deputy.“On this good opportunity, I would like to thank the Government of Qatar for the good relationship, and hoped that co-operation between the two countries will increase in the future,” he said.The ambassador also hopes that Qatar, under the leadership of the new Emir  HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani will remain victorious and prosperous. He said: “On this happy occasion, I would like to extend an Eid Mubarak, Minal Aidin wal Faidzin or in Indonesia we say ‘Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Lahir dan Bathin’ to all Indonesian Muslims residing in Qatar, to the Government and people of the State of Qatar and the entire Muslim community in Qatar.”More than 80% of Indonesia’s 240mn population are Muslims. He said this fact cannot be separated from the long history of relationship between the Indonesia with the Middle East countries, including Qatar.Hadi also said that bilateral relations between the two countries began in 1976. This paved the way for strengthening diplomatic relations especially with opening of the embassy of Qatar in Jakarta in 1997. The Indonesian embassy in Doha was opened in 1999 followed by the visits of the heads of state: the Indonesian president came  to Qatar in 2006 and HH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani visited Indonesia in 2009. “With Indonesia’s large population, vast territory and abundant natural resources, Indonesia is the most appropriate partner for Qatar for investment in various fields of the economy, such as agriculture, mining, infrastructure, banking and tourism,” said Hadi.