REKONSILIASI HUBUNGAN MALAYSIA-INDONESIA DALAM KONTEKS REGIONALISME ASIA TENGGARA.

This article focuses on reconciliation as a process of strengthening Malaysian and Indonesian relations, specifically in the context of Southeast Asian regionalism. Malaysia and Indonesia have many historic interconnections and share many similarities in language, religion, belief and culture. Terms such as nusantara, the Malay world and bangsa serumpun, reflect their socio-cultural closeness and numerous familial networks work to bind the countries together. For the past 50 years however, their relationship has been unstable. As globalization has increased international interdependence, many nations have been encoraged to move towards a process of reconciliation to improve relations with their neighbouring states. Reconciliation is one of the strategies commonly used to resolve interstate conflict and is widely practiced in international politics. The eventual goal of reconciliation is to create an intimate and lasting harmony between the respective governments and citizens of neighbouring countries in the quest for prolonged peace. The process involves far more than signing an agreement; it works on developing a mutual understanding between governments and encouraging national programs that engage all levels of society in the process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]