By Kim Ki-chan
Indonesia is a country in which the people can feel satiated just by laughing. It is said that there was a time in Indonesia's past, when a man able to make a gloomy princess laugh could become a king. There is an anecdote that Singapore's Prime Minister Li Kuan-Yu invited humorous Indonesians to the country to make strict Singaporeans laugh.
The most enviable thing for Koreans is Indonesian laughter. Among the countries I have been to, the people who laugh most are Indonesians.
If you asked about my goal, it is to unite Indonesia, the country that smiles best in the world, and Korea, the most innovative country in the world, so that Koreans could laugh, and Indonesians could innovate. Korea was ranked No. 1 in the Bloomberg Global Innovation Index in 2019. However, what Koreans lack most is laughter. My strategy in Indonesia is to laugh. Then everyone will become friends. My relationship with Indonesia began this way.
Indonesia is known as the jewel of the equator where various ethnic groups live. The land is fertile and there are many fish in the sea. Indonesia and Korea have more of an atmosphere of cooperation than ever before.
During the ASEAN-Korea summit, Indonesia's President Joko Widodo called President Moon Jae-in his brother. Indonesia is the key country in the New Southern Policy of People, Peace, and Prosperity, and is a country with plenty of room for cooperation politically, economically and socially with Korea.
First, Indonesia is, above all else, the best potential partner for peace. Indonesia is playing a central role in the ASEAN alliance, and maintains the middle line. So, unlike the United States, China, and Japan, it is a country that can provide advice in the position of the sincerest interest in inter-Korean issues. Indonesia is a country with strong reciprocity and inclusion.
Since its independence on Aug. 17, 1945, Indonesia has adopted the spirit of Pancasila as the five founding principles that can embrace a variety of ethnicities, regions and cultures. "Panca" means "five," and "sila" means "principle." The spirit represents faith in God, humanism, integration of diversity, realization of democracy through consensus and representative systems, and social justice for the people.
Based on this spirit, Indonesia held the Asian African Conference of the Alliance of Non-Allied States as a middle ground to maintain world peace in the post-World War II Cold War period between the U.S. and Russia.
Indonesia also announced the Bandung Ten Principles for maintaining world peace. In this role Indonesia has great potential to help maintain peace through an inclusive coalition through cooperation between Indonesia and South Korea at a time when the conflict between the U.S. and China intensifies.
Second, Indonesia is the world's fourth-largest country with 270 million people, consisting of 17,000 islands and 700 minorities, and is a very young country with an average age of 30. If Indonesia's resources and Korea's technology are combined, the synergies are expected to be great. This is because Korea's accumulated development experience is desperately needed in Indonesia, and for Korea, which was relatively lacking in cooperation with ASEAN, Indonesia could be a partner in the ASEAN economic bloc.
Until now, Indonesia has had many economic cooperation relations with Japan and China, but recent exchanges are in earnest with the advance of Hyundai Motor, LG Chem, and Lotte Chemical. The cooperation between the Economic, Humanities and Social Research Association and the Indonesian government, which agreed to support President Joko's visit to Korea in 2018 to provide advice on the establishment and implementation of the "Making Indonesia 4.0" policy, is also a great strength.
I describe it as the meeting of Korea, the country that wants to laugh, and Indonesia, the country that wants to innovate. Of course, it is unfortunate that mutual visits are difficult due to the coronavirus crisis, but even at this moment, Korean companies and Indonesian companies are communicating with each other and dreaming. The dream of designing the new capital in Kalimantan on Borneo as a new smart city is also growing.
Third, there is the possibility of social and cultural cooperation between Indonesia and Korea. In particular, the mutual understanding between the young people of the two countries is very high. Super Junior and iKON set the stage to a record level at the closing ceremony of the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, I hope that not only K-pop, but also the expansion of study abroad opportunities, cultural exchanges, cooperation between universities, and mutual visits will be enabled. Humanity degenerates in conflict but it evolves in cooperation.
There is a saying that if you want to go fast you go alone but if you want to go far you go together. Indonesia and Korea shall go together in a long-term partnership for sustainable growth to prosper together. The bigger the dream, the better. Dream big! Start small! Move fast!
Kim Ki-chan is president of the Korean Indonesian Management Association (KIMA) and a professor of business at the Catholic University of Korea.

Sources http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2020/09/197_294715.html