REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- All matters relating to the day-to-day lives of the people, including the management of Morotai Island, North Maluku Province, should have the participation of Indonesians, Sultan of Tidore Husain Sjah stated.

The statement was made by the Sultan while welcoming the National Committee on Homeland Sovereignty and National Dignity Defenders at the Sultanate of Tidore Palace, North Maluku, on Tuesday (Jan 31), according to a statement from Deputy Rector of the University of Bung Karno Teguh Santosa, who also participated in the meeting, received here on Wednesday.

The Sultan issued the statement in connection with an open letter he had penned to President Joko Widodo seeking clarification on a cooperation plan with the Japanese government in managing Morotai Island. 

In the letter, Sultan Tidore raised questions if the plan involved the locals in Morotai and whether the cooperation would benefit the people. "I wrote the letter because I consider President Joko Widodo to be an indigenous son of the Tidore Sultanate as was confirmed during a visit to Morotai in May 2015. I want to help and protect him from various vested interests that might tarnish his image and name," the Sultan of Tidore noted.

Also read: Sultan of Tidore writes an open letter to Jokowi

The Sultan also expressed hope that the entire territory of the Republic of Indonesia would be maintained and managed optimally in the best interests of all Indonesians. Established in the 11th century, the Sultanate of Tidore had a significant influence on the eastern region of the archipelago, including Papua and other countries in the Pacific Ocean.

Tidore joined the Republic of Indonesia in 1950, simultaneously with the dissolution of The Republic of the United States of Indonesia, which was formed at the Round Table Conference in The Hague in December 1949.

In 1956, Tidore played a role in the formation of the West Irian province, and in the same year, Sultan of Tidore Zainal Abidin was appointed as governor of the province, with Tidore as the capital. Morotai is an island in the Halmahera group of eastern Indonesia's Maluku Islands, located in the northernmost region of the country.

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