Monday August 15th is Indonesian Independence Day. Around my neighborhood in Seminyak the national flag, (2 horizontal bars, red and white) is flying on string across our gang (alley). In Jakarta a military parade and flag ceremony will be carried out and attended by the President.
Indonesia attained independence from Holland in a long struggle during the 1940's. When the Japanese invaded Indonesia in February 1942 the Dutch were forced to flee, or be captured. After the war was over Indonesia made it Declaration of Independence on August 17th 1945, with Sukarno as the first President.
The Dutch had other idea though and returned in March 1946. They fought in many famous skirmishes with the Balinese, including the massacre of Balinese hero Gusti Ngurah Rai, and managed to take back control of Bali. Nations around the world were not sympathetic to the Dutch position and in 1949 they withdrew to allow the formation of The Republic of Indonesia in 1950.
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Pada tanggal tujuhbelas Oktober: Kpd semus orang Indonesia -
‘SELEMAT HARI RAYA KEMERDEKAAN’
What!, no bites to my purposeful mistake!. Should have read:
Pada tanggal tujuhbelas Augustus: Kpd semua orang Indonesia -
SELEMAT HARI RAYA KEMERDEKAAN’
I am a little comfused… You write that the Independece Day is today, 15. August. I thought it was on 17.????
Durian,
Indonesian Independance Day IS on the 17th August.
When I put up my first reply to Nick’s post, I was only joking and wanted to see what reaction I would get by writing Oktober. None obviously.
Trust me, IT IS ON THE 17th August!
Barrie,
To make it authentic, at the end of your greeting you should say “MERDEKA!”
Hi Bob,
Aaahhh, the sounds of Megawati Soekarno Putri during the election campaign!. She always said that 3 times at the end of a speech, and, even during it.
The clemency shown to convicted criminals by the Indonesian government on Independence Day made headlines in Australia, particularly when Corby was not a recipient, but others, including some involved in the Bali Bombings were. People here are generally mystified that those involved in mass killings receive more consideration than someone who was involved in none, regardless of the way the law views the perceived crime. Being a Baliphile I am getting a lot of flack from people at work who cannot understand my support for the island and its citizens. What do the locals in Bali feel about the actions of the national government on this matter?
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