The Embassy of Indonesia in Dhaka will organise a dialogue on “Democracy in Inclusive Society” at the Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS) on Monday.

Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Bangladesh Heru H Subolo will deliver the opening remarks at the dialogue while Director, Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (BILIA) and former Chairman, National Human Rights Commission, Bangladesh Professor Mizanur Rahman will speak at the opening session.

Director General of Information and Public Diplomacy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia Siti Nugraha Mauludiah will deliver the keynote address.

Ambassador Heru H. Subolo hosted a social gathering followed by Iftar on Sunday as a preliminary program of the dialogue on “Democracy in Inclusive Society.”

BIISS Chairman Ambassador AFM Gousal Azam Sarker, former diplomats, Professor Mizanur Rahman, Dr Lailufar Yasmin, Director General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dhaka Ferdousi Shahriar and DG (Public Diplomacy wing) Seheli Sabrin, among others, were present.

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Indonesia has been championing inclusive democracy through its flagship program, Bali Democracy Forum since its inception in 2008.

Over the years, the forum has evolved and branched out to invite more parties including students, academicians, media, think tanks and civil society to join in on active discussions about safeguarding democracy.

Indonesia stands out for the principle of home-grown democracy, no finger pointing and no-one-size fits all approach to democratization, according to the concept note of the dialogue.

Indonesia has always been looking for new avenues to spread the importance of home-grown democracy, it reads.

Over the years, Bangladesh and Nepal have shown promises as new frontiers for blossoming democracy.

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Both are regular participants in Bali Democracy Forum and Nepal also had participated in the 2023 Bali Civil Society and Media Forum.

This shows a common vision to Indonesia’s: to proclaim the importance of the embodiment of a robust and inclusive society in the global level, as well as commitment to ensure that every party, regardless of age, gender, sex, orientation, race or religion will be granted equal participation, respect towards humanity and a guaranteed freedom of expression, said the concept note.

Both Nepal and Bangladesh are also rich with potential for partnerships between governments, universities, think tanks and civil society organizations.

They also are well equipped with rich diversities and thriving media and civil society. All three countries will benefit from the collaboration.

The forum will focus on three elements, namely: role of the government, role of civil society, think tank and academicians; and role of media.

The dialogue will be conducted in a panel discussion format. The discussion will be divided into two sessions, each with two speakers and two discussants from each respective country.

The first panel will focus on the theme of “Revitalizing Pluralistic Democracy: Collaborations between Government and Non-State Actors in Democracy” and the second panel will take on the theme: “Democracy in the Digital Age.”

The dialogue will involve Bangladesh and Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, think tank, as well as universities, media and civil society organizations.

The outcome of the dialogue will be in the form of recommendations and plan of actions.