Jakarta workmen held their own version of the Asian Games in the city’s streets as they downed tools for Indonesia’s annual independence day celebrations yesterday.
Workers played football, held tugs-of-war and climbed a greasy bamboo pole as part of their traditional celebrations, held this year a day ahead of the Games’ opening ceremony.
Adding to the sense of fun, the men — who have helped prepare Jakarta for the Games, as part of their work for local authorities — wore dasters, a tunic worn by Indonesian women, for the football game.
“Yes, of course, of course I have contributed to a successful Asian Games. For instance all these colourful murals were done by us,” one worker, Adul, told AFP, pointing to painted walls nearby.
The two-week Asian Games, which are being held in Indonesia for the first time, are split between the capital Jakarta and Palembang, a port city on Sumatra island.
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