JAKARTA - Heroes' Day is a day when the Indonesian nation commemorates the services of heroes who have been willing to sacrifice their lives, energy, property and blood to fight against the invaders on this Mother Earth. They fought at the cost of their lives on the battlefield to defend Indonesia's independence.
To commemorate the services of the heroes who died while seizing Indonesian independence, November 10 is designated as Heroes' Day.
There is a general term which says that 'A great nation is a nation that values and respects the merits of its heroes.' As Bung Karno said, who also said 'Red Coat, never forget history' for the services of heroes who were willing to sacrifice their lives to protect and defend the Indonesian state.
On this year's Heroes' Day commemoration, President Joko Widodo and Vice President Ma'ruf Amin held a ceremony at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery (TMP). After the ceremony, they then went around to sprinkle flowers on several randomly selected heroes' graves.
From VOI's observation at the location, Jokowi, accompanied by Ma'ruf, was seen solemnly reading a prayer at the tomb of the third President BJ. Habibie and Hasti Ainun Besari Habibie, Wife of the 6th President Ani Yudhoyono, former Chairman of the MPR, Taufiq Kiemas. Then, Jokowi also visited the grave of A. Yani, RD Suprapto, MT. Haryono, and S Parman.
After the event, Jokowi had an interview with the media crew. When asked about the welfare of the families of heroes and veterans, Jokowi's answer was hanging. He did not explain the details of what he said.
"Not yet," said President Jokowi, after the ceremony and sowing flowers at TMP Kalibata, South Jakarta, Sunday, November 10.
The welfare of heroes and veterans is still considered minimal
One of the families of the heroes of Brigadier General TNI retired Danpus Kowad Rameli, Umar Mulyoso hopes that the government's attention to the hero families can be increased again. So far, the government's attention to his family has not been maximal.
"The hope is that we will be better, especially those left by the deceased. When the father died, we were still young. But because we have inherited fighting spirit, we can survive," said Umar.
"We hope that there will be an increase, especially for the next people. If we are old like this, it's okay. For the hero families who are not found, for the less fortunate," he added.
Another story comes from Salkam (80). A veteran from Serang, Banten who came to TMP Kalibata. He was dressed in brown, his head was wrapped in an orange hat.
He is a war soldier during the Japanese occupation. He said that he was here today to see comrades in arms who died and remember how those times of war were.
Ending his old age, Salkam lived with his family. He felt lucky that the country still paid attention to him. Every month, he gets IDR 2.5 million a month as a veteran. For Salkam, that kind of money is not enough. He hopes that the government will pay more attention to the welfare of vetaran and their families.
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