Book on Indonesian diaspora in Qatar launched

A book which tackles the ups and downs of Indonesian disapora in Qatar “Mutiara Inspirasi dari Qatar” (The Pearl of Inspiration from Qatar) was launched on Saturday, headed by the Indonesian Embassy in Qatar.
Indonesian Ambassador to Qatar, H E Ridwan Hassan said the book narrates the experiences and contribution of the Indonesian diaspora from different backgrounds who have been living in Qatar for many years.  “It is a compilation of different writings from different people,” the Ambassador said while talking to The Peninsula.  
“We are here not only just to get our jobs, but we are also contributing to the locality. We contribute to Indonesia as well as in Qatar. The Indonesian diaspora has been here for 20 years, and this adds up to what Qatar has achieved today.”
Indonesian diaspora which are now at 17,000 population has been present in Qatar since it started its oil and gas industrialisation.
Moreover, he said  that as the saying goes, “scripta manent, verb Volant,” what is written will last forever and what is spoken will be blown away by the wind. “This book has tried to prevent what has been achieved disappeared without documentation.”
Opening remarks was delivered virtually by Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mahendra Siregar and the Secretary-General of the Indonesian Ministry of Labour, Anwar Sanusi.  This is in collaboration with the Indonesian Embassy in Doha and PERMIQA (Indonesian Community Association in Qatar) and supported by the Ministry of Labour and Indonesia Diaspora Network (IDN) Global.  In addition, the Ambassador said the presence of Indonesian diaspora could contribute on strengthening bilateral cooperation between Indonesia and Qatar particularly on socio-culture aspect. 
The IDN is a network that facilitates and empowers the voice of diaspora communities through its 60 national and local chapters and the number is progressively expanding.