Strengthening North-South Relations: The Case of EU and ECOWAS Cooperation

Regional integration is discussing cooperation among states in a region and the influence of external states or organizations. The cooperation among regions is known as inter-regionalism. As a leader in regional integration, European Union (EU) has been cooperating with the other regions since their name was European Economic Community. Firstly, Europe established relations in the form of political dialogue and cooperation with ASEAN and Asian countries. For this occasion, the EU established Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM). Subsequently, the EU created external relations with African, Caribbean, & Pacific (ACP), South American, etc. This research elaborates on the relation of the EU with the West African region. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is the regional institution chosen by the EU to engage in the relationship. Some scholars acknowledged that ECOWAS is one of the most organized institutions in the African Region. Asymmetric relation between EU and ECOWAS denotes the relation of The North and The South countries. By analyzing the inter-regionalism framework, this paper exercises a liberal institutional perspective as the main paradigm. The results found that inter-regionalism could reinforce strong institutions in both regions.

Questioning Joko Widodo’s Global Maritime Fulcrum: Change and Overlap Policy

The Global Maritime Fulcrum is a strategy chosen by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), declared in 2014, consisting of 7 pillars. This program has been running for three years since Presidential Regulation Number 16 of 2017 concerning the Indonesian Maritime Policy mainly focuses on domestic pillars such as the Sea Highway. This policy did not last long when President Jokowi entered his second term to focus on the vision of Indonesia Maju, which emphasized Indonesia's position as a developing country. Using Rumelt's right strategic approach and bad strategy and changes and continuity in foreign policy, the author tries to find the extent to which the implementation of Indonesian Marine policy can become Indonesia's central foreign policy? This research found, among other things: 1) Indonesian Marine Policy authorities overlap, even though there is no clear multi-sectoral scope of work between agencies. 2) The focus on domestic needs only makes the Indonesian Maritime Policy rely on the Sea Highway as the primary focus so that it is not oriented towards an outward-looking and long-term vision. 3) The lack of commitment of President Jokowi's administration in executing the points in the Presidential Regulation. The study concludes that President Jokowi completely changed Indonesia's Maritime Policy strategy in his second term.

Measuring Sustainable Livelihood in The Border Areas: The Case Study of Sangihe Island, North Sulawesi

This paper measures sustainable livelihood through the government poverty reduction program in Indonesia's border areas. We drew on primary field data sources and secondary data, including oral histories, in-depth interviews about livelihood, ecological, and documented evidence of environmental, socioeconomic, and institutional dynamics to identify the sustainability of poverty reduction programs. We use this information to understand whether the program is resilient or vulnerable. Cross-border areas are the most strategic position in building a country's image. One of the development priorities is to develop Indonesia from the periphery by strengthening regions and villages within the framework of a unitary state, especially the outermost villages and border villages. Sangihe Islands Regency is one of the border areas located in North Sulawesi Province. This paper is an initial analysis of the development of border areas and poverty alleviation programs in the Sangihe Islands Regency. The Sustainable Livelihood Approach is used to assess poverty reduction strategies in the Sangihe Islands Regency. The research shows that poverty in the Sangihe Islands Regency has become a main priority in the development program of the Sangihe Regional Government. National and Provincial governments support this program through the implementation of poverty alleviation. This program has had positive results, but it is vulnerable because it does not focus on sustainability.

Antara Ideologi dan Ketimpangan: Justifikasi Kekerasan FARC di Kolombia

In analyzing armed conflict, or any other political violence, it must be viewed as something that didn't emerge from the void. Violence cannot be explained by one variable only, such as ideology or objective reality. Both variables intertwined and justified one another. This article attempts to demonstrate how those variables justify such political violence in Columbia. This article concluded that aside from encouraging violence, an acute structural problem, as demonstrated by inequality or injustice, also provides an ideal condition for the formation of the FARC that embodied Marxism-Leninism ideas. The intertwined Ideology and Structural Problem justifies terror and violence conducted by FARC. Terror and violence are viewed as the only effective tactics in a situation where demobilization and political struggle through peaceful means only produce destruction for them.

The Path to Democracy? Foreign Aid Post-Military Coup in Myanmar

Aid has transformed into a promising tool of policy to spread, gain, or maintain power and influence internationally. One of the common aid institutions keeps actively promoting and pushing norms and values of democracy internationally in the United States through USAID. Upon that, one of the recipient countries to receive USAID programs in Myanmar. USAID has been focusing on and pushing democratization to occur in Myanmar and creating supporting programs to respond to the 2015 election, increasing the number of aids after the majority win of the NLD Party in the 2015 election. However, after the military coup successfully seized the government on February 1, 2021, USAID decided to shift its programs to support the civil society movement and strengthen democracy in Myanmar. Within this paper, there will be explanations of how USAID's programs after the military coup occurred in Myanmar, and why it matters to the United States not fully to halt their programs and aids of USAID. This paper will also show how USAID programs and aid to Myanmar before the coup.

Improving Justice and Security in Indonesia: The Role of Australia-Indonesia Partnership for Justice (AIPJ2)

Located in a strategic area consisting of various ethnicities and religions, Indonesia is vulnerable to transnational crimes and violent extremism. Furthermore, this also creates social injustice, where groups are marginalized. Therefore, Indonesia continues to strive to improve justice and security for its citizens by increasing cooperation with other countries or international organizations. This article explains how Indonesia-Australia cooperation's role in maintaining justice and security in Indonesia through the second period of the Australia- Indonesia Partnership for Justice (AIPJ2). The author will use qualitative methods and use secondary data, where data will be collected from previous studies and related literature. This research shows that AIPJ2, through its support and programs to several Civil Society Organizations and government institutions, has contributed to positive changes in Indonesia's justice and security sectors, even though these changes were done gradually and faced challenges.

Combating Modern Slavery: The Strategy of Indonesian Government to Protect Migrant Workers

Economic migration create opportunities as well as humanitarian challenge. People travel across national boundary looking for work in the country destination. They would benefit their hosted as well as sending high amount of remittance for home. However, those dream were not applicable to all economic migrant when some of them fall victim into human trafficking. This research would investigate the strategy as well as challenges by Indonesia government and NGOs to promote protection of Indonesian migrant worker. It is imperative to evaluate state policies, state diplomacy, transnational advocacy network, and the nature of companies as agent of service provider. It would show how current practices and law has loopholes that create challenges for public private partnership to provide adequate support for Indonesian migrant worker. Investigation is conducted through interview, observation and literature review. The struggle to end modern slavery shall be one among priority in protecting civilian abroad, if the government is serious to minimize economic inequality and to change itself into welfare nation.

Layu Sebelum Berkembang: Studi Kasus Kerjasama Sister City Malang dengan Fuqing dalam Komoditas Kedelai

The purpose of this paper is to determine the factors that have stopped the Sister City cooperation between Malang City and Fuqing City in the field of soybean commodity. Fulfilling the need for imported soybeans is important for Malang, because it is well-known for its many ‘Keripik Tempe’ producers or commonly called ‘IKM Tempe’, so that the potential for Fuqing imported soybean is important to be realized. The study used a qualitative descriptive method, and used the Paradiplomacy Concept and the Sister City Concept in explaining the cooperation between Malang City and Fuqing City. The results obtained were the cooperation between sister city Malang City and Fuqing City in the field of soybean commodity which ‘failed’ because soybeans from Fuqing were of lower quality than soybeans imported from United States and had large production losses, so that the IKM Tempe in Malang preferred to use imported United States soybeans and stopped the use of imported Fuqing soybeans. Until now, the two city governments have not been heard meeting to discuss this issue, which makes the city government as a sub-state actor not yet having a strong commitment to this cooperation.

Developing Transnational Indigenous Solidarity: The Case of Borneo Dayak Forum

Dayak people are an indigenous community inhabiting the Island of Borneo. They dub themselves as the natives and the inheritance of the island’s heritage and culture. Before the intrusion of colonial influences, they were prosperous and great, but now they are ironically struggling to revive and retrace their ancestral heritage in their own home. This article seeks to explain and analyze the effort of the Dayak community to advocate for their rights and culture by developing a transnational advocacy network called Borneo Dayak Forum to promote sustainable living. This network serves as a platform that Dayak people capitalize upon to influence policy-making in Indonesia in which Dayak people currently inhabit especially in Kalimantan Island. This article argues BDF has played a significant role in promoting Dayak people's agendas in achieving sustainable living, especially in the realm of the preservation of customary law and protection of indigenous lands.

Exploring Youth Political Participation: K-Pop Fan Activism in Indonesia and Thailand

This paper explores K-pop fans political participation by looking at recent fan activism that happened in Indonesia and Thailand. Since the US fans participation in BLM campaign and ‘sabotaging’ of Trump’s Tulsa campaign rally, the K-pop fans community has made headlines on mainstream media as part of contemporary political discourse. Similar situation is also encountered in Southeast Asia where Korean popular culture has been consumed for decades and has large following. K-pop fans in Indonesia and Thailand have participated in various forms of activism supporting humanitarian causes through donations, criticizing new laws, or protesting against the government. Focusing on four key areas of analysis: the intersection between cultural and civic/political participation, the tension between participation and resistance, affect and collective identity, and impacts; this paper aims to explain how fandom may act as a powerful force that bridges cultural consumption and political participation amongst youths in the era of media convergence.