Army Day involves 11,000 troops

JAKARTA: More than 11,000 soldiers will take part in Army Day Celebrations on Dec. 22 at Kemayoran in Central Jakarta.

The huge celebration will force the Jakarta Police to close Jl. Benyamin Sueb, the main access to Kemayoran Fair Grounds, where the ceremony will take place between Dec. 15 and Dec. 22 to allow the soldiers to prepare for the event.

To mark the specialty of this year's celebration, Army Strategic Reserve Command (Kostrad) chief Lt. Gen. Bibit Waluyo will lead the troops during the ceremony to be presided over by Army chief Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu.

The celebration will also mark the inauguration of 10 Raider battalions, which will be dispatched to Aceh as part of the ongoing war against separatist rebels.

Jakarta Military Command spokesman Lt. Col. Apang Soepandi said on Friday that military equipment, including the Russian- made M-35 assault helicopters, will be displayed during the celebration.

Participating troops from other provinces started to stream into the capital on Friday. -- JP