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Jokowi starts his day visiting Asian Games venue
Irrespective of a large-scale rally in Central Jakarta, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has stuck to his schedule with an inspection visit to the Bung Karno Stadium that will host the 2018 Asian Games.
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Field trip: Presiden Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (center) talks with Youth and Sports Minister Imam Nahrawi (second right) during a visit at Gelora Bung Karno main stadium in Senayan, Jakarta on Friday as part of the country's preparations in hosting 18th Asian Games in 2018. (Courtesy of Youth and Sports Ministry/File)
A
s protesters swarmed the National Monument (Monas) square on Friday, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo started his day as scheduled by inspecting renovation work at Bung Karno Stadium (GBK) in Senayan, Central Jakarta.
GBK is being upgraded in preparation for the Asian Games 2018.
Jokowi, who came directly from the Bogor Palace, south of Jakarta, arrived at the stadium about 45 minutes late.
Asked by reporters about the rally, he said, "[I hope] it is in line with the shared commitment to [ensure it will be] a super peaceful event".
He refused to say where he would perform the Friday prayer and to disclose his schedule for the rest of the day.
Jokowi headed straight for the Merdeka Palace after wrapping up his visit at 9 a.m.
The Presidential security detail (Paspampres) personal were seen in military uniforms and with handguns instead of their usual Batik attire. Displaying handguns is uncommon for the Paspampres' main group, which normally hides its weapons.
When Paspampres personnel guarded Jokowi during his visit to Soekarno Hatta International Airport on Nov. 4 – the day of a massive Muslim rally that turned violent at night – they wore Batik attire.
The palace has beefed up security since the early morning with barbed wire and barricades put in place before 6 a.m. Traffic surrounding the Palace was already closed at that time. (yan)
