Jakarta (ANTARA News) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and First Lady Ani Yudhoyono here on Wednesday left for Bali to officially open the Fourth Bali Democracy Forum.

The Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) IV will be held on 8 - 9 December 2011 at Bali International Convention Center (BICC), Nusa Dua, Bali, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

In the evening, upon his arrival in Nusa Dua, Bali, the head of state is scheduled to receive separate courtesy calls from special envoys respectively of Papua New Guinea and the Japanese prime minister, and later hold a meeting with a Bangladeshi delegation.

During the meetings, the president will be accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Djoko Suyanto, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Hatta Rajasa, Minister/State Secretary Sudi Silalahi, Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam, Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa, Trade Minister Gita Wirjawan and the foreign ministry`s Director General for Asia, the Pacific and Africa TM Hamzah Thayeb.

Yudhoyono will officially kick off the Fourth Bali Democracy Forum on Thursday. The Forum`s theme this year is "Enhancing Democratic Participation in Changing World: Responding to Democratic Voices."

Following the opening ceremony, the president will host a lunch for heads of state/government and foreign delegations participating in the forum.

He is also scheduled to hold separate bilateral talks respectively with the Qatari prime minister, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the prime minister of Timor Leste, the prime minister of Mongolia, the deputy prime minister of Turkey, and the vice president of the Philippines.

The forum will focus on efforts towards enhanced people participation by way of responding to democratic voices, and relevant issues involved in the process.

It is expected that 15 Head of States would attend the event, with 54 participating countries from the Asia Pacific region, and 66 countries and international organizations that would attend as observers.

During the meeting, leaders and experts are expected to discuss sub-themes on "The Ability of State to Respond to the Voice of Democracy", and "Ensuring Democratic Space for Civil Society Participation".

(SYS/F001)

Editor: Suryanto
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