Indonesia, the Netherlands Look to the Future

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands depart from Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta on Wednesday (11/3/2020), during a state visit to strengthen Netherlands-Indonesia cooperation in education. Earlier, the Dutch king also visited the Royal Palace and the Cyber Village in Yogyakarta.

The context of the statement made by President Joko Widodo at a press conference with Dutch King Willem-Alexander at the Bogor Palace that history cannot be erased is appropriate and correct.

We can learn from the past to reinforce our commitment to build an equal relationship, which is based on mutual respect and mutual benefit (Kompas, 11/3/2020).

On the same occasion, King Willem-Alexander reiterated the Dutch Government\'s explicit recognition of the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence on 17 Aug. 1945. Besides that, the King also expressed regret and apologized for the excessive violence by the Dutch in the years after the Proclamation.

Wisdom should indeed emerge from both parties. From the statements of the two heads of state, we capture the spirit of looking to the future to address the relations between the two countries, despite the extraordinary bitter-tasting feeling caused by the colonial era.

Besides the sincere statement of King Willem-Alexander, the King\'s gesture strengthened his statement. Precisely when trips abroad are being cancelled due to the Covid-19 outbreak, the king and queen were determined to see through the state visit, which had been planned for a long time. Really, we highly appreciate this and it ouches our hearts.

KOMPAS/HERU SRI KUMORO

President Joko Widodo (second right) and First Lady Iriana Widodo (left, rear) witness King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands plant a sandalwood tree on Tuesday (10/3/2020) at Bogor Palace, West Java. This is the Dutch king’s first visit to Indonesia since he succeeded the throne following Queen Beatrix’s abdication in 2013, and was intended to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the economy and human resources.

Moreover, the visit of the King of the Netherlands has given birth to a number of business cooperation contracts worth 1.5 billion euros or Rp 24.37 trillion. We hope the two countries can benefit from the cooperation. We both know the two countries can complement each other. As has already been done, from the Netherlands we can learn about science and technology in general, about water management, and about defense, also flight and maritime affairs.

On the contrary, the Netherlands can see the vast and continuously growing Indonesian market to expand its industry. However, the market perspective will be more complete if accompanied by technology transfer and investment programs to create jobs and increase the capacity of Indonesian human resources.

If the future becomes a joint orientation of the two nations, it is better to open opportunities for joint programs, such as for the development of renewable energy, like wind and solar energy.

If the future becomes a joint orientation of the two nations, it is better to open opportunities for joint programs, such as for the development of renewable energy, like wind and solar energy. For such a program, it would be easy for the two countries to see common interests because basically all nations are faced with the common challenges of climate change and global warming, including joint research to anticipate a situation during disease outbreaks such as Covid-19.

If in the past there was a certain pride when Indonesian economists studied in Rotterdam and engineers studied at TH Delft, now when the era changes to digital, we certainly can also learn from the Netherlands for new fields supported by digital technology.

In The Hague, the Tong Tong Fair is regularly held, why don’t we think about similar festivals in Indonesia. There is much abundant capital to develop relationships that can dispel the wounds of history, and reinforce intimacy.