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Jokowi leads delegation to offer Prabowo's tribute to Pope Francis
The former president was one of four envoys President Prabowo tasked with paying his and Indonesia's respects to the late pope, which has ruffled some feathers among the public.
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Former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo (second left) and members of President Prabowo Subianto’s cabinet (from left), Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Djiwandono and Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai, along with former energy minister Ignasius Jonan, arrive in the Vatican on April 25, 2025, to attend the funeral of Pope Francis on the following day on behalf of Prabowo. (Kompas.com/ Indonesian Embassy in Vatican)
O
n behalf of President Prabowo Subianto and Indonesian citizens, a delegation of envoys including former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo attended the funeral of Pope Francis on April 26, recalling his humility and lifelong advocacy for global peace.
The President handpicked Jokowi to attend the pope’s funeral, along with Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai, Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Djiwandono and former energy minister Ignasius Jonan.
Ignasius headed the organizing committee for Francis’s first and only visit to Jakarta in September last year, the third pontiff to visit the world’s largest Muslim-majority country.
Clad in black suits, ties and peci, black caps popularized as part of state attire by first president Sukarno, the special delegation paid their respects to the late pope on Saturday.
Later that day, Ignasius uploaded to his Instagram account a photograph of the former president opening his palms upward in the typically Muslim gesture of prayer at the foot of Francis’s coffin in the Vatican
“We lost one of the role models who left behind a legacy of love for world peace and a legacy of humility for all nations,” Jokowi said on Sunday in a video message on Instagram.
He added that all members of the delegation prayed for God to receive Francis’s soul, and that he might rest in everlasting peace.
