JAKARTA, Jan 2 — The Malaysian Foreign Minister appreciated the commitment of the Indonesian media to provide accurate and objective reports on the events of the two countries.
Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir said balanced reporting with clear facts can educate the public and repel the content of fake news or reports on social media
In a session with the media, he also agreed with the editorial leadership who tried to highlight less productive issues, including disagreements about culture at UNESCO.
The session, organised by the Embassy of Malaysia here, was recently held in conjunction with Zambry’s official visit to Indonesia. He was accompanied by the Secretary (Southeast Asia department) of Wisma Putra, Roseli Abdul.
Zambry also suggested that relations between the two countries under the administration of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, who is very close to President Joko Widodo, should be given attention.
“These two leaders are capable of becoming ‘the new force’ in the ASEAN organisation to strengthen cooperation and protect the stability and prosperity of the Southeast Asian region,” he said.
The Indonesian media congratulated Zambry on his appointment as Foreign Minister and hoped that the good relations between the two countries would continue to be strengthened.
Zambry was invited to attend the ‘Hari PERS Nasional’ or Indonesian Journalists Day which will take place in Medan, North Sumatra, this February.
In addition to discussions on the issues of Indonesian workforce in Malaysia and the prime minister’s visit, the Indonesian media fraternity urged the governments of both countries to immediately combat fake news on social media.
The meeting was attended by the head of the Malaysian-Indonesian Journalists’ Association (ISWAMI) Indonesia Asro Kamal Rokan and the head of the Indonesian Journalists Association Atal S. Depari.
Also present was the secretary general of ISWAMI Indonesia N. Syamsuddin Ch. Haesy and representatives from Harian Kompas, MetroTV, Republika, Tempo, The Jakarta Post, and tvOne.
