Every year, on December 13, Indonesia commemorates Archipelago Day in honor of the Djuanda Declaration on December 13, 1957. Djuanda Kartawidjaya, the Prime Minister of Indonesia at the time, initiated the Djuanda Declaration to inform the world that the Indonesian sea between and within the Indonesian archipelago becomes a unit of the territory of the Republic of Indonesia.
With the existence of this declaration, the total area of the Republic Indonesia is 2.5 times the previous area, from 2,027,087 km2 to 5,193,250 km2. On December 11, 2001, President Megawati Soekarnoputri as the President of Indonesia at the time through Presidential Decree Number 126 of 2001 set December 13 as “Archipelago Day” and became a national celebration day that has been commemorated every year.
By commemorating Archipelago Day, the Indonesia nation is encouraged to honor four things. One of them is that Indonesia to be seen as a maritime country that can manage its marine natural resources in a way that benefits the community. It also makes Indonesia a respected player on the world stage. We, Indonesian, should be proud of our sea that is a part of our beautiful country. Happy Archipelago Day! (Ed)