Pope Francis to receive state welcome during Indonesia visit

Jakarta, Aug 26 (ANTARA) - Pope Francis, Leader of the Catholic Church, will receive a state welcome from President Joko Widodo at Jakarta's State Palace during his Indonesia visit next September.

Indonesia's Chief of Protocol, Andy Rachmianto, confirmed that the Pope will arrive in Indonesia on September 3, 2024, according to the timetable agreed by the Holy See. Pope Francis will be treated as a state guest and as the leader of the Catholics, he added.

"On September 4, the Pope will be received by Mr. President at the Merdeka Palace and participate in activities at the State Palace," Rachmianto stated at a press conference at the Presidential Palace Complex here on Monday.

According to the protocol chief, the Pope will then preside over a grand mass at the Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex attended by more than 90 thousand Indonesian Catholics on September 5 afternoon.

"The Pope will also attend an agenda at Jakarta's Istiqlal Mosque with the Grand Imam and at the nearby Jakarta Cathedral," Rachmianto added.

The protocol chief highlighted that the International Sustainability Forum (ISF) agenda at the Jakarta Convention Centre (JCC), also attended by the president, will take place on the same day.

Hence, residents are advised to plan their travel, as the traffic at those places will be adjusted for the state agenda, he remarked.

Indonesia will be the first country to be visited by Pope Francis during his Southeast Asian tour in September 2024. After Indonesia, the Pope is scheduled to visit Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore.

The Pope earlier planned to visit Indonesia in 2020 but had to call it off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Police confirmed to have deployed 4,520 officers for Operation Tribrata Jaya to secure the Pope's visit to Jakarta.