he Bali Civil Society and Media Forum began its annual meeting in Banten on Tuesday. The meeting, initially scheduled in Bali, was moved because of the Mount Agung eruption.
The two-day forum focuses on the question of whether democracy brings justice, security and welfare.
Civil society and media leaders from Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Laos and ambassadors from Denmark and the Netherlands are among the speakers in the forum, organized by the Institute for Peace and Democracy and the Indonesian Press Council.
“Does democracy deliver? The answer is yes," Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said in her opening remarks.
Indonesia has for years championed democracy. Former foreign minister Hassan Wirajuda once cited the oft quoted remark that “democracy is the worst form of government except for all the others."
A similar theme is set for the Bali Forum for Democracy, an annual gathering of leaders set to open this year on Thursday in Banten. (End)
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