Nearly 50 years after his demise, the name of India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru still echoes in this small Indonesian town, over 5,000 kilometers from India, where he had charmed the people with just one visit.
The 1955 Bandung Conference played pivotal role in the formation of a bloc of Non-Aligned Nations which decided to remain equidistant from the USA and the erstwhile USSR camps. The global order was divided in these two camps with the advent of cold war between the two major powers of the globe after second world war ended.
Nehru along with Indonesian First President Sukarno, Egypt's Gamal Abdel Nasser played crucial role in setting up of NAM. Nehru's famous Panchsheel doctrine was incorporated into 10 resolutions passed by the Asian Africa Conference here.
Six decades later, Nehru remains as famous as he is in India with people stopping the Indians to ask about him. Banners with his photographs wave throughout this capital of West Java province of Indonesia.
The 133-year old Hotel Savoy, which hosted the first conference has named a suite number 144, in which he stayed in 1955, in his honour.
Nehru suite still has his portrait size photograph attending the conference in 1955. The walls of hotels were decked up with his photographs attending the conference besides the register signed by him and Naseer preserved and kept for display here.
Today the 22 Heads of State took a walk from Savoy to "Gedung Merdeka" to reaffirm their belief in the 10 resolutions of the 1955 conference. The building where the walk culminated is now museum of Asian African Conference. It laid out same chairs for dignitaries which were used six decades ago for them.
Nehru also received mentions in the speeches of host Indonesian President Joko Widodo, saying it is a city where the struggle against colonialism, imperialism and injustice was inflamed.
He paid tributes to the Asian African initiators: Soekarno, Nehru, Sir John Kotelawala and U Nu, who are today represented by all dignitaries in the room.
