Asian-African Summit commemorates 60th anniversary of Bandung Conference
On 19-24 April 2015, a series of commemorative events including the Asian-African Summit was held to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference in Jakarta and Bandung hosted by the Indonesian government.
The first Asian-African Conference also known as the Bandung Conference was held on 18-24 April 1955 in Bandung, West Java, Indonesia. The Conference held under the leadership of the governments of Burma (Myanmar), Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India, Indonesia and Pakistan was attended by 29 developing countries and marked a milestone event in the history of developing countries in their struggle against colonialism and to promote South solidarity. The Conference adopted the 10 principles of Bandung, which became the mantra for developing countries’ solidarity and led to many important developments including the establishment of the Non-Aligned Movement, the Group of 77 and the South Commission and South Centre.
By Adriano José Timossi
The Asian-African Summit and other commemorative events on the occasion of the 60th Anniversary of the 1955 Asian-African Conference and the 10th Anniversary of the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership were held on 22-24 April 2015 in Jakarta and Bandung, Indonesia under the theme “Strengthening South-South Cooperation to Promote World Peace and Prosperity”. The commemoration events had a notable high attendance with 91 Asian and African countries, 21 heads of state/government of Asian and African countries, 15 observers and 10 international organizations, including the South Centre. The summit was hosted by Indonesian President Joko Widodo, and co-chaired by Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, current Chair of the African Union (AU).
The Summit adopted three outcome documents: the Bandung Message 2015, the Declaration on Reinvigorating the New Asian-African Strategic Partnership(NAASP), and the Declaration on Palestine. Commemorations also took place in Bandung on 24 April with a historical walk and speeches at the Gedung Merdeka building.
A series of other important events took place on the side-lines of the conference. On 21 April, over 600 representatives of the Asian-African business community attended a summit at the Jakarta Convention Centre and agreed to establish the Asian-African Business Council to be based in Jakarta. A meeting of over 200 Asian and African Parliamentarians was also organized.
Other important events included the first Asia Africa Smart City Summit, the Asian-African Students Conference and the Bandung Historical Study Games. To celebrate the cultural linkages between Asian and African peoples, a beautiful carnival was also organized with a photo exhibition, parades, concerts, and numerous cultural performances marking with great joy the festivities of the 60 Years of the Asian-African Conference.
Follow-up to the Asian-African Summit
In a press conference, PresidentJoko Widodo said that the Summit has sent out a message to the world that there remain imbalances in the world today, far from fairness and far from peace and in this regard, “the Bandung Spirit remains relevant in today’s context”.
The event also identified concrete steps to promote Asian-African cooperation and established an operational framework for a monitoring mechanism.
The summit highlighted the importance of strengthening South-South cooperation through technical cooperation and capacity building initiatives and programs and measures in this regard are to be undertaken with the example of the decision of establishing an Asian-African Centre in Bandung to boost South-South Cooperation.
Leaders also agreed that all Asian and African Foreign Ministers will meet regularly every two years at the side-lines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Leaders also declared 24 April as Asian-African Day and Bandung as the capital of Asian-African solidarity.
Adriano José Timossi is Senior Programme Officer of the Global Governance for Development Programme (GGDP) of the South Centre.