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Jokowi to attend indigenous people's congress in North Sumatra
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Indigenous people from several regions dance together accompanied by a traditional Batak song from North Sumatra entitled Sinanggar Tullo at the National Museum of Indonesia on Tuesday to celebrate International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. (JP/Wnd)
P
resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is expected to attend a national congress of indigenous people held on March 13-21 after repeatedly pledging to improve their livelihoods.
Organized by the Indigenous People’s Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), the fifth Congress of Indigenous People of the Archipelago (KMAN) will be held in Tanjung Gusta village, North Sumatra, and is set to address a number of issues such as the consolidation of a nationwide indigenous people’s advocacy network, the importance of dialogue between the government and indigenous people and the political participation of indigenous people.
“Hopefully Jokowi will attend [the congress]. There must be dialogue between the government and indigenous people in order to provide them with protection and acknowledgment,” Office of Presidential Staff (KSP) expert staff member Usep Setiawan told a press briefing ahead of the event on Thursday.
(Read also: COMMENTARY: Who will benefit from Jokowi's land reform?)
“Transforming The State with Real Action” is the theme of the congress, which is expected to bring together 2,272 indigenous communities across Indonesia and will be accompanied by a number of side events such as cultural performances and exhibitions.
AMAN secretary-general Abdon Nababan expressed hopes that Jokowi’s attendance would provide the impetus for the government to expedite its plans related to indigenous people. He added that the President still had a lot of work to do in order to fulfill his promises to them, such as making customary forest ownership official, settling conflicts and issuing a law on protection for indigenous people. (ary)
