Indonesia, China Display Cultural Archives

BEIJING, China, June 22 (Antara) - Indonesia and China are organizing a joint exhibition titled "China-Indonesia Social and Cultural Relationships Archives Exhibition" in Beijing from June 20 to 26, 2017. "The exhibition is part of a commitment to strengthen cooperation in archives between Indonesia and China, which have been agreed in 2012," Indonesian Ambassador to China Soegeng Rahardjo said here on Wednesday. The archives on the past culture are collections of the National Archives of the Republic of Indonesia (ANRI), the State Archives Administration of China (SAAC), and the Archives of Fujian Province. The ambassador reminded young diplomats to preserve, introduce, and understand the archives as they are part of the nation's history. Head of ANRI, Mustari Irawan, hoped that Indonesia's cooperation with China will continue in the future and contribute to promote the Indonesian cultural diplomacy in China. "The good relationship between China and us has been established for a long time, even has been started since the first century AD," he noted. According to him, the expedition of Admiral Ceng Ho (Zheng He) to Southeast Asia, including to Indonesia, is one of historical journeys of the development of China's diaspora community in Indonesia. Meanwhile, SAAC Chief Li Minghua added that the archives are important and strategic references. "The younger generation needs to know that the history of friendship between Indonesia and China has been long and should be maintained in future," he explained.