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Social media key to enhancing China-RI relations, say students
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo speaks at a business forum in Seoul on Monday, which included showing a picture of himself and daughter Kahiyang Ayu with Korean boy band member Choi Min-ho during the band's visit to Jakarta in 2014. (Courtesy of Presidential Secretariat)
Young Indonesian and Chinese students think fan bases and social media platforms may be the key to improving future ties.
During a discussion titled "Youth Dream Under Global Context: How Young People Can Advance Social Progress" at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies in the city of Guangzhong, Guangdong, China, graduate student Jeremy Jiang said increased people-to-people meetings between Indonesian and Chinese youth was essential to build mutual trust.
University of Indonesia (UI) student Langit Rinesti agreed and added that such meetings must be based on mutual interests.
"Not just general people-to-people exchange; we need to make it specific. So agriculture students should meet with agriculture students," the communications major said on Tuesday.
"The best example of this is fan bases. For example, if you like a specific K-Pop group, you don't care what planet the other [fan] is from, you'll both say that you love this [group] and support them."
Indonesia has been seeking stronger social and economic ties with China, following decades of uneasy relations. Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) recently established a China Desk in the hope of smoothing communications and gaining US$30 billion from the neighboring country.
Meanwhile, Muhammad Bilhaqi, an international relations student from UI, suggested the establishment of a joint social media platform where Indonesian and Chinese youths could communicate and exchange ideas.
Both China and Indonesia's dense populations have high numbers of internet users, with 649 million and 73 million respectively, which contributes to a large number of social media users.
However, the establishment of a new social media platform would be essential as several popular social media platforms in Indonesia, such as Facebook and Instagram, are blocked by the Chinese government, leading to the use of alternatives such as Weibo.
"We can use the internet, we can make a new platform to establish a new forum for connectivity on social media," Bilhaqi said.
"My lecturer said you will gain better communication [skills] if you meet more [people], so we need to meet more."
Fifteen Indonesian university students traveled to Guangdong University of Foreign Studies as part a "Write to China" essay-writing competition organized by the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia (FPCI) and China's Foreign Ministry. (dmr)
