As many as 82 countries participated, about half of them as observers, while eight countries were represented at Heads of State/Government level. Norway was represented with an observer’s delegation from the Embassy in Jakarta, the 4th time Norway participated in BDF. The President, in his opening speech, touched upon the expectations to democracy; freedom, peace, moderation, progress and equality, while he also mentioned that democracy in addition to elections, includes efforts in protecting human rights and, tolerance and rule of law. This year’s co-chair was Bangladesh, and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina delivered in her opening remarks both her personal experiences and her country’s national history in the quest for freedom and democratic governance.
Norway also works closely with BDF’s Institute for Peace and Democracy and has been supporting some of their program activities in Bali. The Institute is situated at Udyana University Campus where a new building for this purpose is under construction. The Norwegian Gateway College at Bali is also cooperating with the Institute for Peace and Democracy.
Parallel to the Bali Democracy Forum was Bali Media Forum, supported by the National Press Council of Indonesia and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the third year. This year’s title responded well to the theme of the BDF, discussing topics under the title “ Being Heard: The Role of Ethical Journalism and Media Support in Enhancing Democratic Participation in a Changing Information Environment”. Ambassador Homme’s opening remarks can be viewed below. The Media Forum is one of the results of the previous Global Intermediadialog initiated by Indonesia and Norway.