Residents Now Urged Not to "Wail" at the Gates of Jokowi's Home
The adjutant of Indonesia’s seventh President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), Police Commissioner Syarif Fitriansyah, has urged the public not to carry out “wailing” acts at the gates of Jokowi’s private residence.
Syarif said that recently there have still been visitors attempting to perform similar acts.
The phenomenon emerged after Jokowi’s residence on Jalan Kutai Utara No. 1 was labelled as the “Solo Wailing Wall” on Google Maps. The trend went viral after a video circulated of a young man pretending to wail in front of the house’s gates.
“There are still some who come to wail. We are urging people not to do the same,” Syarif was quoted as saying on Monday (16 February).
Syarif stressed that the location is a private residence, not a religious tourism site or monument as described on the digital platform.
“This is the residence of Mr Joko Widodo and Mrs Iriana, not the Solo Wailing Wall,” Syarif emphasised.
He confirmed there are no restrictions on visitors to Jokowi’s private home following the viral “Solo Wailing Wall” trend. However, he urged the public not to treat Jokowi’s house as though it were the Wailing Wall.
“There are no restrictions. Everything remains as normal,” Syarif said.
Jokowi’s residence on Jalan Kutai Utara No. 1 had suddenly gone viral after being tagged with the name “Solo Wailing Wall” on Google Maps. The marker appeared directly above the location of Jokowi’s home in Kelurahan Sumber, Kecamatan Banjarsari.
Beyond Google Maps, the phenomenon was amplified by a circulating video of a young man acting as though he were wailing in front of the residence gates. The video was shared, among others, by the Instagram account @indopium.
“The Wailing Wall in Solo has become one of the most hyped spots for Gen Z youth,” the account wrote.
Syarif acknowledged he was already aware of the unusual naming on the digital platform. However, he could not confirm whether the president who served from 2014 to 2024 was himself aware of it.
When asked about the possibility of requesting a name change on Google Maps, Syarif declined to comment further. He personally said he was not offended by the label.
“As for me, I’m not bothered,” he said briefly.