KEDUTAAN BESAR REPUBLIK INDONESIA
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA
8 Darwin Avenue, Yarralumla, Canberra, A.C.T. 2600
AUSTRALIA

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DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA

PRESS RELEASE

No. 72/PR/IX/2004

INDONESIA EXPRESSES ITS CONDOLENCES ON THE UNTIMELY DEMISE OF
PRESIDENT YASSER ARAFAT

 

1.        It is with great sorrow and profound sadness that we learned the news about the untimely demise of President Yasser Arafat, a leader of the Palestinian people and a hero to us all. He was the ultimate embodiment of decades of the just struggle of a nation for its undeniable rights to self-determination. A figure much loved and respected not only by Palestinians but also many in the world over, including in Indonesia.

2.        The Government and the people of Indonesia extend our heartfelt condolences to the people of Palestine and the bereaved family. We pray to God the Al-Mighty for the late President Yasser Arafat and for his family to be blessed with patience and strength in this time of sorrow.

3.        In this moment of grief we stand by the Palestinian people and believe that they would face this loss with courage, integrity, and endurance. We share this great loss and we fervently hope that it would instead translate into a renewed momentum for the attainment of independence, freedom, eternal peace, and prosperity of the Palestinian people—in their own country, in their own homeland.

4.        In line and consistent with the Preamble of the 1945 Constitution, the Government and the people of Indonesia reaffirm our unwavering solidarity and support to the people of Palestine in their struggle to realize an independent State of Palestine and the achievement of a just and lasting peace in the region in accordance with the relevant UN Resolutions.

Jakarta, 11 November 2004