Indonesia embraces festival as unity stressed

Indonesian leaders joined members of the ethnic Chinese community at a Chinese New Year event on Saturday that blended celebrations with a call for greater solidarity among Indonesians in the fight against COVID-19.

Speaking by video, President Joko Widodo urged his compatriots to "make the pandemic a bridge for building solidarity that provides an opportunity for easing the burdens of our brothers and sisters with friendliness and brotherhood warmth".

For the event, most wore long-sleeved batik shirts in red. They included People's Consultative Assembly Chairwoman Puan Maharani. Maharani, who is a granddaughter of Indonesia's independence hero Sukarno and daughter of former president Megawati Sukarnoputri, said the Lunar New Year was a time for demonstrating the tradition of mutual help upheld by communities across the nation.