JAKARTA: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong attended the inauguration ceremony of President Joko Widodo on Sunday afternoon (Oct 20), as the Indonesian leader was sworn in for his second term in office.
At the ceremony held at Jakarta’s parliament building, Mr Lee was joined by other foreign dignitaries including Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, China Vice-President Wang Qishan and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.
Mr Lee was accompanied by Mrs Lee, as well as Minister for Education Ong Ye Kung.
At about 4pm local time, Mr Widodo and Vice-President Ma’ruf Amin both took their oath of office.
Earlier in the day, Mr Lee had also called on Mr Widodo at the Istana Merdeka. Leaders from Brunei, Australia, Cambodia and Eswatini also paid similar courtesy calls on the Indonesian president.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong calls on Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the Istana Merdeka on Oct 20, 2019. (Photo: MCI)
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Mrs Lee speak with Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his wife Iriana at the Istana Merdeka on Oct 20, 2019. (Photo: MCI)
Mr Widodo and Mr Lee had met in Singapore earlier this month at the Leaders’ Retreat between Singapore and Indonesia.
The Leaders’ Retreat was Mr Lee’s fourth with Mr Widodo, and the first since the Indonesian president’s re-election in May.
During the Leaders’ Retreat, Singapore and Indonesia agreed on an electronic data exchange to facilitate and secure trade through the link-up of both countries’ National Single Windows.
READ: Excellent, multi-faceted relations between Singapore and Indonesia in ‘good shape’: PM Lee
Both countries also inked a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will deepen cooperation between the national archives of both sides.
Speaking during a joint press conference at the Istana, Mr Lee said then that an “excellent relationship of trust and cooperation” built with the president has meant that ties between both sides have prospered during the latter’s first term in office.
Given the “deep, multi-faceted and forward-looking” ties between both countries, Mr Lee added he looked forward to sustaining a “positive trajectory” into Mr Widodo’s second term.
Alongside Mr Ma’ruf, Mr Widodo defeated retired army general Prabowo Subianto and businessman Sandiaga Uno with 55.5 per cent of the national vote in the April election.
TIGHTENED SECURITY
Security across the capital had been noticeably tighter in the lead-up to the inauguration as well as on inauguration day.
More than 30,000 security personnel had been deployed to safeguard Jakarta, with Military Chief Hadi Tjahjanto ordering extra security measures at key locations, such as the parliament, presidential palace, airports, state electricity firm and state-owned oil and natural gas corporation.
In addition to last month’s protests against a proposed change to the criminal code, Sunday’s inauguration also comes a little over a week after Mr Widodo’s chief security minister was stabbed in an attack by two suspects belonging to the Islamic State-linked terror network Jamaah Anshaurut Daulah (JAD), who were arrested at the scene.
Dozens of suspected militants have since been detained in a nationwide dragnet following the assassination attempt on Mr Wiranto during a visit to Pandeglang in Banten province.
The 72-year-old was immediately rushed by helicopter to Jakarta for treatment and is recovering in hospital.
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It was also announced last Wednesday that a celebratory parade which was slated to follow the inauguration ceremony would be cancelled.
Presidential Chief of Staff Moeldoko denied that the parade was scrapped because of security issues. Rather, he said that Mr Widodo did not want a fancy celebration.
