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or the fifth time, Bali will host the annual Bali Democracy Forum (BDF), an inclusive and open intergovernmental forum on the development of democracy in the Asia Pacific region, in Nusa Dua this week.

During the two-day meeting, on Nov. 8 and 9, delegates will discuss advancing democratic principles in the global setting, focusing especially on how democratic global governance contributes to international peace and security, economic development and effective enjoyment of human rights.

Twelve of the 58 invited heads of state have confirmed their attendance at the meeting, including Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and President of the Republic of Korea Lee Myung-bak, who will co-chair the meeting along with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Out of the 73 countries that will attend the meeting, 27 are represented by their foreign ministers, while others are representatives of international organizations. So far, 1,243 people have registered as participants.

Siti Nugraha Mauludiah, director of technical cooperation at the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, said on Monday that in its fifth year, BDF had continued to develop as a prominent forum to discuss the progress of democracy and enabled countries to share their views and experiences on democracy.

This year’s forum may seek to discuss approaches to integrate democratic principles into global governance, especially in managing collective efforts to promote peace and security, economic development and human rights, she said.

 “On the issue of peace and security, the forum may discuss ‘Is democracy a prerequisite to international peace and security’? And ‘How can the international security architecture promote better conditions for peaceful democracy,’” she elaborated.

The forum’s discussion on economic development would focus on how the voices of developing countries could be better represented in global economic governance, particularly in global economic uncertainty, she added.

Launched in 2008, BDF has gained increasing support and recognition from countries in the Asia Pacific region and beyond as a regional forum to promote practical political cooperation to advance democratic principles.

 “In the years since its inception, the forum has explored and identified common principles on various aspects in relation to the promotion of democracy at the national level,” she said.

Among other discussion points in the meeting was the impact of technology and social media, Selamatta Sembiring, director of international communications at the Indonesian Communications and Information Ministry, added.

“With the rapid development of technology and social media, every individual across the world becomes part of the global web of influences and impacts. This signifies that public participation is relevant in building democracy, not only at the national level, but also at the global level.”

I Gede Putu Wirawan from Udayana University’s Institute for Peace and Democracy, criticized the event saying that BDF should accommodate more local wisdom, from where democracy takes its roots.

“I think four years of BDF, and now is the fifth year, is not enough. At the level of high officials who attend the meeting, the forum might have been successful, but the impact has yet to reach out to the people. This forum should explore local values by involving local leaders in the discussion,” he said.