“Today, we commemorate the merits of heroes who have died, while making the determination to continue their struggle in other fields. Our struggle now is to break the chain of COVID-19 transmission, which has plagued this country for eight months,” Jokowi said in an Instagram post, along with caricatures of national fighters and medical workers.

 

 

 

 

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Bangsa ini masih tegak berdiri dan maju berlayar mengarungi zaman karena perjuangan para pahlawan. Mereka hadir di setiap masa dan menyambut setiap tantangan. Hari ini, kita mengenang jasa-jasa para pahlawan yang telah gugur, sembari memancang tekad untuk meneruskan perjuangan mereka di palagan yang lain. Perjuangan kita kini adalah memutus rantai penyebaran pandemi Covid-19 yang sudah delapan bulan mendera negeri ini.

A post shared by Joko Widodo (@jokowi) on Nov 9, 2020 at 5:03pm PST

President awarded the title to the heirs of the six figures in a ceremony at the State Palace in Central Jakarta. The awardees were stipulated in Presidential Decree No. 117/2020.

Reading the decree, acting military secretary to President Brig. Gen. Basuki Nugroho said the President conferred the title to the six figures as a high honor for their outstanding services during their lifetime.

“They have led and participated in armed struggles, political struggles or struggles in other fields to achieve and defend the independence and realize national unity and integrity,” Basuki said, as livestreamed on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel.

The awardees include Sultan Baabullah from North Maluku, the seventh sultan of the Ternate Sultanate, and Machmud Singgirei Rumagesan from West Papua, the king of the Sekar region, now Fakfak regency, who fought against the Dutch colonial government and later established the Tjendrawasih Revolutionary Movement of West Irian (GTRIB). They are the first national heroes from both provinces.

The other four are first National Police chief Gen. (ret) Raden Said Soekanto Tjokrodiatmodjo from Jakarta, former information minister Arnold Mononutu from North Sulawesi, Youth Congress figure Sutan Mohammad Amin Nasution from North Sumatra and warlord Raden Mattaher from Jambi.

The heirs and family members of the newly named national heroes attended Tuesday’s ceremony, during which Jokowi and other high ranking political officials greeted them one by one.

Read also: Payout of grants to help families of national heroes amid pandemic: Minister

Vice President Ma’ruf Amin said he hoped that the celebration of Heroes Day this year would be an opportunity to awaken the spirit of heroism in fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

He called on the people, especially the younger generations, to live the heroic morals of sacrifice, unity, unyielding nature, patriotism and mutual care.

“By continuing to instill a sense of mutual care, the Indonesian nation can win and rise again from the downturn due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Ma’ruf said.

Earlier in the morning, the President also led a ceremony to pay respect to independence heroes at Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in Kalibata, South Jakarta. Maruf and several Cabinet members also attended the ceremony.