Swedish MPs meet Agung to boost ties

Wed, 09/03/2008 10:51 AM | World

A four-member delegation from the Swedish Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs met with Indonesia's House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono on Tuesday to boost cooperation between the two legislative bodies.

Agung was accompanied by members of House Commission I on foreign affairs, Sidharto Danusubroto, Markus Silano and Tosari Wijaya.

The House members were surprised to learn that women are prominent in Swedish politics.

"Women occupy 47 percent of the total number of seats in Swedish parliament. For us, it is still difficult to reach half that number," Sidharto, the Commission I vice chairman, told Antara news agency after the meeting.

Under the leadership of Kerstin Engle from the Social Democratic Party, the delegation is visiting Indonesia from Sept. 1 to 5 to get firsthand information on Indonesia.

"The aim of the visit is to get an overall insight into current Indonesian affairs. The consultations in Jakarta cover bilateral, regional and global issues," Sweden's Ambassador to Indonesia Ann Marie Bolin Pennegard said in a statement sent to The Jakarta Post.

Relations between Sweden and Indonesia have been developing rapidly since the visit by Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt to Jakarta in April this year. -- JP/Veeramalla Anjaiah

Comments (0) | Post comment

A | A | A |