Agencies, Magelang, Central Java – Wearing military fatigues and black combat boots, the newly-appointed cabinet of President Prabowo Subianto began a mountain retreat on Friday, in an unconventional bond-building exercise involving more than 100 members of his new government.
Ministers and their deputies donned caps and camouflage outfits and stood in salute at a parade ground of a military academy in Central Java province to hear briefings from Prabowo, a former special forces commander
"We must work in the same rhythm for the same goals. The government doesn't work alone, but as a team," Prabowo said, according to a statement from his office, which shared images of the retreat, during which ministers will be sleeping in tents, with air-conditioning.
One image showed ministers stood in lines, lunging forward during stretching exercises.
"The point of all work is discipline, loyalty to the nation of Indonesia," 73-year-old Prabowo said in one video, drawing applause from his cabinet.
Details of what the three-day camp will entail have been scant, but Prabowo plans to lead exercises and discuss good governance and corruption prevention with his cabinet, which is the biggest in decades with 48 ministers and their 56 deputies.
The lineup is a diverse grouping that includes politicians, technocrats, former military officers and a religious leader, with ages ranging from 34 to 77, with most members in their 50s and 60s.
Former defence minister Prabowo won the presidency in February's election by a big margin at what was his third attempt and the camp is reminiscent of his early days in the military, in which he served for nearly three decades.
Gerindra, his political party, has organised similar events at Prabowo's spacious Hambalang estate in West Java.
Videos posted on Instagram on Thursday showed ministers smiling and posing for selfies on their way to the camp in Magelang aboard a Lockheed Martin Super Hercules aircraft.
One showed relieved-looking ministers applauding happily as the aircraft landed.
"It's great," said Agrarian Affairs Minister, Nusron Wahid, while holding prayer beads in a video posted by a fellow minister.
NGOs and his former military bosses accuse Prabowo of ordering the abduction of democracy activists at the end of New Order leader Suharto's rule in the late 1990s.
Prabowo was discharged from the military over the abductions, but denied the allegations.
The United States and Australia have refused in the past to give Prabowo a visa because of his rights record but he has visited both countries in recent years.