Indian-Indonesian relations

In 1950, the first President of Indonesia - Sukarno called upon the peoples of Indonesia and India to "intensify the cordial relations" that had existed between the two countries "for more than 1000 years" before they had been "disrupted" by colonial powers. (1) Fifteen years later in Djakarta, government-inspired mobs were shouting: "Down with India, the servant of imperialists" and "Crush India, our enemy," etc. (2) Yet in the spring of 1966, the foreign ministers of both countries began speaking again of an era of friendly relations.

India had supported Indonesian independence and Nehru had raised the Indonesian question in the United Nations Security Council.

India has an embassy in Jakarta [http://www.embassyofindiajakarta.org/] and Indonesia operates an embassy in Delhi [http://www.indonesianembassy.org.in/] . Many Indians visit Indonesia and vice versa.

Background

Indians had visited Indonesia since ancient times. They spread Hinduism and many other aspects of Indian culture including the Brahmi Script. India had played a big role in Indonesian culture, which is a mix of Indian traditional Indonesian culture.

The name "Indonesia" derives from the Latin "Indus", meaning "India", and the Greek "nesos", meaning "island". (probably to do with the similarity of the culture in both regions).cite book |last=Tomascik |first=T |coauthors=Mah, J.A., Nontji, A., Moosa, M.K. |title=The Ecology of the Indonesian Seas - Part One |publisher=Periplus Editions Ltd. |year=1996 |location=Hong Kong |id=ISBN 962-593-078-7] The name dates to the 18th century, far predating the formation of independent Indonesia.

ources

1 - Foreign Policy of India: Text of Documents 1947-59 (p.54)

2 - New York Times Sept.10 1965

References