Proud Moment as Diaspora Welcomes Prabowo's Arrival in Tokyo
A warm atmosphere filled with pride enveloped several Indonesian diaspora members as they welcomed the arrival of President Prabowo Subianto at the hotel where he was staying in Tokyo, Japan, on Sunday evening.
According to information received, the Head of State arrived around 8:00 p.m. local time and was immediately greeted enthusiastically by several diaspora members who had been waiting for his arrival.
At the hotel entrance, the welcoming moment unfolded with a strong cultural nuance. Three Indonesian children dressed in traditional attire stood neatly, handing over flowers to President Prabowo.
This simple gesture became a symbol of the diaspora’s longing as well as pride in their national leader.
Entering the hotel area, the atmosphere grew even more lively. Several ministers from the Merah Putih Cabinet, who had arrived in Japan earlier, joined the welcome, along with dozens of Indonesian diaspora from various professional and educational backgrounds.
They lined up neatly, some unable to hide their emotion upon finally seeing President Prabowo up close.
For Taufiq, an engineer working as a consultant at an electricity company in Japan, the moment became an unforgettable experience.
“Today is the first time meeting Mr. Prabowo Subianto in person. It feels extraordinary, right? Why is it extraordinary? Because out of 280-290 million people, we have the chance to meet our President of the Republic of Indonesia directly. This is truly extraordinary, very happy,” he said.
Similar feelings were felt by Ara, a nurse who has long resided in Japan. She admitted she never expected to meet the President in person.
“Actually, I’m nervous. Outside, the expectation was to meet. And this is also an opportunity for the diaspora in Japan to meet,” said Ara.
The opportunity became even more memorable when Ara managed to get President Prabowo’s autograph. She recounted the moment with great enthusiasm.
“Maybe because of the position in the line too, at the end of the line, right in front of Mr. Prabowo, and Mr. Prabowo is very friendly too, approaching us one by one, and alhamdulillah, I got the chance to get it signed,” she said.
Meanwhile, Tiwi, a PhD student at Chuo University who attended with representatives from the Indonesian Students’ Association in Japan, expressed her happiness about the President’s visit this time.
For Tiwi, even though she hadn’t had a direct conversation yet, President Prabowo’s presence remained a valuable moment.
“Very happy, of course. And this is the first time meeting in person, although I haven’t been able to talk yet, but I’m already happy to see Mr. President’s presence,” she said.
Tiwi holds great hopes for the increasingly close diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Japan through this visit.
“From my own perspective, I hope that with good diplomatic relations between Japan and Indonesia, this will open up various opportunities for the Indonesian diaspora, and also from Indonesia to come to Japan or from Japan to Indonesia, both in terms of knowledge transfer, investment, and economy, it will get better in the future,” she said.
During his visit to Japan, President Prabowo is scheduled to make a state call to Emperor Naruhito of Japan. In addition, the Head of State is also scheduled to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Indonesia and Japan have maintained comprehensive cooperation for 68 years in various strategic fields, from economy and politics to social and cultural aspects. In recent years, relations between the two countries have continued to show a positive trend.
The visit reflects the close friendship relations that have long been established between Indonesia and Japan, built on the basis of mutual trust and respect.
President Prabowo’s visit is expected to further open up new mutually beneficial collaboration opportunities and strengthen the partnership between Indonesia and Japan.