The Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Indonesia office (FES) felt pleased when the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) invited FES for the third time to become a co-organizer of the "Bali Civil Society and Media Forum" (BCSMF), which was held again as an integral part of the "Bali Democracy Forum" (BDF). Under the overarching topic of this 13th Bali Democracy Forum "Democracy and the COVID-19 Pandemic", Indonesian, regional and international experts discussed how democracy could be preserved in this unprecedented and challenging times and how democracy could play an important role to assist societies in responding, recovering

and building resilience within this multidimensions crisis, which is a challenge and imposition for democratic standards and democratic culture worldwide. All of these are due to democratic governments all around the globe must strike a delicate balance between protecting public health, while ensuring that internationally acknowledged human rights are not permanently restricted.