BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

INDONESIANS in Brunei celebrated their 70th Independence Day at a reception last night.

Indonesian Ambassador to Brunei Nurul Qomar vowed to continue nurturing strong bilateral relations with the sultanate.

In a speech, Nurul Qomar said since bilateral relations were established 31 years ago, cooperation between Indonesia and Brunei have been excellent in all fields.

She said Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s state visit to Brunei early this year showed strong bilateral cooperation between the countries, especially with the signing of Memorandum of Understanding on health and on chambers of commerce cooperation.

“His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah travelled to Jakarta in April 2015 to attend the 60th anniversary of Asian-African Summit, symbolising both countries’ commitment to cooperate in many fields under the auspices of South-South Cooperation spirit,” said Nurul.

She also spoke of cooperation between Indonesia and Brunei within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as the regional grouping is nearing to the establishment of ASEAN Economic Community by the end of this year.

The ambassador also lauded the friendly reception of Brunei’s government towards Indonesians who reside here.

“One specific aspect in bilateral relations between Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam is the presence of tens of thousands of Indonesians who are living and working in Brunei – the biggest foreign nationals in Brunei,” said Nurul.

It was previously reported that there are about 70,000 Indonesians in Brunei.

The reception also saw a cake-cutting ceremony with Minister of Home Affairs Yang Berhormat Pehin Udana Khatib Dato Paduka Seri Setia Ustaz Hj Awg Badaruddin Pengarah Dato Paduka Hj Othman and other envoys from ASEAN member states.

The Brunei Times