September 4, 2024
JAKARTA – Pope Francis touched down in Jakarta on Tuesday at noon to start the first leg of his much-anticipated Asia-Pacific tour, with his arrival in Indonesia, home to one of the world’s largest Muslim populations, hailed by the country’s interfaith groups as a significant move for promoting tolerance and peace.
The plane carrying the 87-year-old pontiff landed at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, at around 11:15 a.m., bringing an entourage of 136 people, including journalists and Catholic bishops.
The trip to Jakarta, along with the other visits to Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore, will be the pope’s longest trip abroad since assuming the papacy.
Upon landing, Pope Francis received a red carpet welcome and was greeted by several Indonesian officials.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo was not at the airport, but welcomed the pope through a statement delivered several hours before the plane landed.
“On behalf of the people of Indonesia, I warmly welcome and extend my gratitude for the visit of His Holiness Pope Francis to the country,” Jokowi said.
“Indonesia and the Vatican share the same commitment to nurturing peace and brotherhood, as well as welfare for humanity,” added the President, who is scheduled to welcome Francis in a ceremony at the State Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday.
The pontiff was also welcomed by religious and civil groups, which have been anticipating the pope’s visit. The trip was initially planned to be held in September 2020, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With a tagline of “Faith, Togetherness and Compassion”, the first papal visit to Indonesia in over three decades has been projected to send a message of tolerance and humanity.
“May this visit solidify harmony among the peoples of our nations and invigorate the sense of humanity and brotherhood everywhere,” said Yahya Cholil Staquf, chairman of the country’s largest Muslim group Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), in a recorded statement on Tuesday.
Muhammadiyah, the second-largest Islamic organization, conveyed that Pope Francis’ visit is “meaningful” for both Indonesia and the pope, its chair Haedar Nashir said in a statement on Tuesday.
One day before the pope landed, various religious organizations of Indonesia’s six recognized religions gathered in Jakarta to express the hope that the pontiff’s activities in Indonesia could be referenced for global interfaith harmony.
Protestant church group, the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI), said the visit could provide momentum for Indonesia to further embrace itself as a diverse country, despite the occasional friction between religious, racial or ethnic groups.
From rights to climate
While excitement has overtaken as the dominant mood of the papal visit, some called upon the leader of the Catholic Church to use his visit as an opportunity to discuss pressing issues, such as the Indonesian government’s commitment to resolving past rights abuses.
“This visit will grant an important platform for advocating against the use of repressive policies for peaceful demonstrations, including in Papua, as well as preventing discriminatory practices against minority groups,” said Usman Hamid, executive director of Amnesty International Indonesia.
Hopes have also mounted for the pope to highlight the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza, where over 40,000 people have been killed in less than a year due to Israel’s intense military campaign against Palestinian armed group Hamas. The pope has voiced his concern over the dire situation in the Middle East on various occasions.
Read also: Democracy is in bad health, Pope Francis says
Talks on the climate crisis, a topic close to Pope Francis, were also highly anticipated, as his arrival comes against the backdrop of extreme rains and heat waves, as well as rising sea levels.
The Bishops’ Conference of Indonesia (KWI), one of the organizers of the pope’s visit to Jakarta, asserted that Pope Francis would only focus on his pro-humanity mission.
“He will bring forth messages of humanity and fraternity, as decided by the pope himself before October [and] the recent political dynamics in the country,” KWI head Antonius Subianto Bunyamin said on Monday.
Whatever message the pope will tell his congregation in Jakarta will have to wait until at least Wednesday, as he was scheduled to rest on Tuesday following a 13-hour flight from Rome.
But enthusiasm was palpable among the country’s Catholic community. Despite little to no chances of interacting with the pope, dozens of people lined up on Jl. Jend. Sudirman and other streets in Central Jakarta hoping to see a glimpse of Pope Francis on his way to the Vatican Embassy compound.
The pope is slated to visit Istiqlal Mosque, the largest mosque in Southeast Asia, on Thursday to sign a joint declaration of humanity with the mosque’s grand imam. He will also lead a Mass at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, with an expected attendance of more than 80,000.