Memoirs of Akbar Hashemi – August 31, 1992

I woke up with the strong shaking of the plane in the ocean. I fastened the belt and did not sleep anymore. From the space of the large Indonesian island of Sumatra that we were crossing, I watched the situation of the island from above; It is relatively green. Near Jakarta, many small islands rise from the water; Like a rocky hill whose deeper part is taken by the sea.

Mr. [Syed Mohammad] Gharehi, [Minister of Post, Telegraph and Telephone] claimed that Indonesia has seventeen thousand islands, which Dr. [Hasan] Rohani excluded. Finally, we read in the writings that they have about thirteen thousand islands and about one tenth of them are inhabited.

We landed on schedule at ten o'clock Jakarta time and seven thirty o'clock Tehran time at the city's old airport, which is near Jakarta. Me and Efat were officially welcomed. Our old national anthem, which has been changed recently, was sung in the ceremony. They changed the local dance group that they had for guests at the airport and they were female, and they brought a male group. Instead of dancing, they presented another local program.

We sat in the hall for a while and greeted Mr. [Mohammed] Suharto, the [Indonesian] president. Then we went to Hilton Hotel with Mr. Arefin, accompanying minister and head of the joint commission of Iran and Indonesia. In the entrance hall of the hotel, a group was performing a kind of local instrument and percussion for the guests. The hotel staff, who were mostly women, looked at the Iranian delegation with special attention.

Because it is near the equator, their day is about twelve hours. The weather is mild and sunny with a temperature between 24 and 28 degrees Celsius. In the special suite of the hotel, Dr. Velayati and his companions, who came ahead to prepare the plans, explained the work and told the meeting schedule. At our own request, we went to the palace and saw the building where the conference [of the heads of the Non-Aligned Movement countries] was held; It is interesting. They have had a big hall since the old days and to hold this conference, they have added new parts which are very big halls.

They said that the hall was built in eight months, which, if true, shows high executive power. They have also built a tunnel that connects Hilton Hotel, the guest accommodation, to the conference building from underground, and it is about 600 meters long. We passed a part of this tunnel with small electric cars that work with batteries; Cars do not have speed, so that some of the companions on foot

They accompanied us.

From there, we came to our residence, which is owned by Iran and is located in the elite neighborhood of the city. The building is old, but not bad. On the way, I got many explanations from the host about the economic and social situation of Indonesia. Everything is expensive and without subsidies, and workers' wages are low. After having lunch and resting and watching TV, I took a shower.

In the evening scholars and clerics came to Jakarta. Their clothes are like normal people and not like us. They also know a little Arabic. One of their elders spoke and said welcome. First he read a verse and a hadith, then he spoke in Indonesian. One of their students, who studied in Iran, translated his words into Persian. Then I spoke and the same student translated in Indonesian. The meeting was friendly and warm. When saying goodbye, I shook hands with all of them and they introduced themselves. Some of them were Shiites and some of them had come to Iran.

We went at night and explored some of the city. Nabahl, Bahrain and Soderman streets are among the most important. Mr. [Syed Asghar] Qureshi, our ambassador, gave good explanations.

We came back, had dinner and watched TV programs. The children went to the hotel and me, Efat, Yasir and a group of guards stayed. In the news of the conference, good attention is paid to the Iranian delegation.