“…lusuhnya kain bendera di halaman rumah kita, bukan satu alasan untuk kita tinggalkan…” (Iwan Fals)Indonesia, the largest archipelago country in the world, comprises more than 13,000 islands which stretch almost 5,000 km in strategic location astride major sea lanes from Indian Ocean to Pacific Ocean and divided into three time zones. There are about 300 ethnic groups, speaking 365 languages and dialects inhabit the islands.
Richly endowed with natural resources and hosting a phenomenal array of distinct cultures, the islands have been a magnet to traders and European colonisers. Portuguese was the first came to Indonesia in 15th century before displaced by Dutch which took control for more than 350 years until Indonesia declared its independence in 1945.
There is a multicultural concept of strength in difference that has been adopted by Indonesian for so long. It is reflected in the motto “Unity In Diversity”.
The population of Indonesia was estimated 216,108,345 in July 1999. The official language is Bahasa Indonesia and the currency is Rupiah (Rp).(YS)
