The roses were delivered in a dark box tied with a gold satin bow. In the center of the red roses was a separate bunch of roses painted in gold and arranged in the shape of a heart. On the side of the flowers were written: "Happy 20th Wedding Anniversary from: Basuki Tjahaja Purnama". 

The flowers were placed in a room of the Kunstkring Art Gallery in Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Thursday. In the next room, Veronica and her son Nicholas were celebrating the couple's anniversary with the co-authors of Ahok di Mata Mereka (Ahok in Their Eyes). 

Read also: Getting to know Ahok through 'Merubah Indonesia'

The wedding anniversary celebration was held to coincide with the event conveying appreciation for the 51 authors contributed to the book, which was launched in July 2017. 

Neneng Herbawati, who initiated the book and also organized the event, said Ahok himself had sent the flowers to his wife. 

"Ahok chose the flowers himself because they are Bu Vero's favorite," Neneng said on Thursday, referring to Veronica by her nickname, as quoted by tempo.co. 

In addition to the flowers, Ahok also wrote a letter to Veronica. "You are God's gift," Nicholas read out from the letter to his mother. "My love for you now is bigger than it was 20 years ago."

The husband and wife must  celebrate two decades of their marriage separately, as Ahok is currently serving his two-year sentence at the police’s Mobile Brigade Command detention center in Depok, West Java. (liz/kes) 

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