In total, we will have five separate meetings. We will discuss several issues at the meetings. One of the interesting issues concerns ASEAN identity.Yogyakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia is hosting the 15th ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting for Culture and Arts (SOMCA) and Related Meetings in Yogyakarta on September 9-12, 2019.
The meeting, organized along with the meeting of ASEAN officials and three dialog partners Japan, South Korea, and China, is a follow-up to a meeting of ASEAN Ministers Responsible for Culture and Arts (AMCA) organized last year.
As the meeting’s host, Director General of Culture of the Education and Culture Minister Hilmar Farid will lead the 15th ASEAN SOMCA to be preceded by the ASEAN Inter Senior Officials Meeting on the first day of the meeting on Wednesday (Sept 11) and continued by a meeting of ASEAN Inter Senior Officials and their dialog partners on the second day.
"In total, we will have five separate meetings. We will discuss several issues at the meetings, with one of the interesting ones concerning ASEAN identity," he remarked in Yogyakarta on Monday night.
He noted that the 15th ASEAN SOMCA adopts a theme that is a continuation of last year's theme of “Embracing the Culture of Prevention to Enrich ASEAN Identity.”
ASEAN’s culture of prevention, adopted since 2017, is a concept of culture encompassing mindset, attitude, and behavior focused on averting dire impacts on the life of the community.
This year’s ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting will deliberate on the terms of reference (TOR), fundamentals for cultural activities, and proposal for joint statement, including discussing work plan in the cultural field at the higher level.
Delegates from the 10 ASEAN member states of Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam as well as three dialog partners Japan, South Korea, and China have congregated at the meeting.
Translator: Yashinta Difa Pramudyani/Suhar
Editor: Sri Haryati
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
