ASEAN 50 Parade Held In Jakarta On Sunday

JAKARTA, Aug 28 (Antara) - Costume, flag and cultural parades from 10 Southeast Asian countries enlivened ASEAN 50 Parade held in Jakarta on Sunday to mark the golden jubilee of the regional grouping. The parade started from the National Monument (Monas) Square at around 07.00 a.m. and ended on Imam Bonjol Street via Hotel Indonesia roundabout on MH Thamrin Street. Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno MArsudi joined the parade, carrying ASEAN flag in miniature. More than 2,800 participants, not to mention hundreds of volunteers took part in the parade, which was the peak of a series of events held to mark the ASEAN's golden jubilee. The participants came not only from the community, organizations, schools, companies and ministries in Indonesia but also from institutions in other ASEAN member countries, ASEAN's dialog partners and ASEAN Secretariat, showcasing costume parade, flag parade, and cultural parade. ASEAN was established in Aug 8, 1967, by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. The regional intergovernmental organization now comprises of 10 Southeast Asian states, including Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam.