Puan Becomes The Deputy Parliament Of Southeast Asian Countries Who Delivers Messages At The ASEAN Summit

JAKARTA - Chairman of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Puan Maharani, was appointed as Deputy Parliament for the Southeast Asian State which will convey a message from the 42nd ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) of the ASEAN Summit (KTT). This follows Puan's position as President of AIPA in 2023.

As a parliamentary forum for countries throughout Southeast Asia, AIPA has an important position on the agenda of the ASEAN Summit. At the 42nd ASEAN Summit which will be held in Labuan on 9-11 May 2023, there will be a plenary session between ASEAN state leaders and AIPA through the ASEAN-AIPA Interface agenda.

The ASEAN-AIPA interface is an important forum as a forum for dialogue and cooperation between ASEAN leaders and parliaments who are members of AIPA.

According to Puan, the ASEAN-AIPA Interface meeting became a forum for ASEAN Leaders to exchange views with MPs Chair Members of AIPA on various issues and challenges faced by the region and strategies to overcome them.

"This meeting is also a manifestation of the importance of AIPA in an effort to achieve a goal with ASEAN," said Puan, Monday, May 8.

The ASEAN-AIPA Interface Meeting at the 42nd ASEAN Summit will be held on May 10, 2023. According to Puan, cooperation between ASEAN state leaders and AIPA Member Parliament is important to exchange views on various issues and challenges facing the region.

"More responsive parliament is expected to be able to provide legislative support in encouraging the government to make the right and fast decisions in responding to the developments and challenges faced," said the first woman to serve as Chair of the DPR RI.

Prior to the ASEAN-AIPA Interface agenda, parliamentary representatives AIPA and its delegation will hold a preparatory Meeting. In this Preparatory Meeting, all delegates present will review the initial draft of the AIPA message or AIPA Message prepared by the AIPA Secretariat and the host country.

Puan explained that AIPA Message will later become the core of things that the Speaker of Parliament, Member of AIPA, said need the attention of the ASEAN Leader, who is currently chaired by Indonesia. At the ASEAN-AIPA Interface, AIPA Message will be delivered by Puan as Chair of AIPA this year.

"The AIPA Message design has historically emphasized AIPA's perspective on the important role of cooperation and collaboration between ASEAN and AIPA in achieving common goals," said Puan.

The AIPA Message draft is also an affirmation of the commitment to overcome the challenges facing the region. Such as terrorism, maritime security, and illegal activities such as fishing and wildlife trafficking.

The AIPA Parliament has always encouraged inclusive participation in community development processes, harmonization of legal frameworks, and peaceful conflict resolution. Puan emphasized that AIPA Message was created to ensure an increase in the welfare of the people of Southeast Asia.

In particular, AIPA can give a strong voice and can help ensure that the needs, aspirations, and interests of the people in ASEAN, including those living in vulnerable situations, are reflected in regional initiatives, and furthermore, materialize," he explained.

In line with the theme of the ASEAN 2023 Summit where Indonesia holds the baton of chairmanship, namely ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth, Puan said the Indonesian House of Representatives was ready to host the AIPA meeting.

Puan hopes that ASEAN and AIPA can collaborate better collectively to seek peace, stability, and security in the region as described in ASEAN's View of the Indo-Pacific.

"Welcome, delegates from the ASEAN Summit and participants in the ASEAN or AIPA parliamentary session in Indonesia. Hopefully, Indonesia's chairmanship this year will be useful and will produce progress on regional issues that will be discussed," said Puan.

Bung Karno's grandson hopes that delegates from 11 participating countries at the ASEAN and AIPA Summits can enjoy the natural beauty and tourism in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT). Puan is sure that tourism in Labuan Bajo can attract ASEAN state leaders to encourage their citizens to visit Indonesia.

"The 42nd ASEAN Summit is a good momentum to continue to encourage and promote Indonesian tourism, especially super priority tourist destinations," he said.

Puan also assessed that the implementation of the ASEAN Summit in Labuan Bajo would also have a positive impact on the progress of the Indonesian economy. In particular, for the people around Labuan Bajo.

Not only improving the economy for tourism industry players such as hotels, travel and restaurants, but also MSME actors who can advance the creative economy in NTT. That way, the impact of the implementation of the 42nd ASEAN Summit can be felt directly by the community.

"Local governments and local communities must be able to take advantage of this momentum to continue to improve and improve the quality of human resources and infrastructure in order to support economic growth and progress in tourism in the future," said Puan.

"And we hope that the ASEAN Summit in Labuan Bajo will be successful so that it can further prove that Indonesia is able to organize international activities well," he concluded.