JAKARTA • Indonesian President Joko Widodo called for calm after a violent protest by hardline Muslims last week, yet it was his khaki bomber jacket that excited social media and triggered a rush by Indonesians to snap up similar clothing.

The President, who normally wears a white long-sleeved shirt, is rarely seen as a fashion icon by young Indonesians.

But Twitter was abuzz for hours with speculation over the brand of the jacket Mr Joko wore in a televised appearance shortly after midnight last Friday, where he blamed "political actors" for stirring trouble at a rally attended by over 100,000 protesters.

The khaki bomber jacket Mr Joko (above) wore to a televised appearance shortly after midnight last Friday has excited social media and triggered a rush by Indonesians to snap up similar clothing. PHOTO: REUTERS

An executive at an Indonesian company that owns the franchise rights for Zara in the country said the jacket in question was made by the Spanish clothing retailer and it was already sold out in almost all of its stores.

"The demand for these jackets keeps coming and we have placed a repeat order for them," Ms Fetty Kwartati, corporate secretary of PT Mitra Adiperkasa Tbk, told Reuters over the telephone.

A Zara employee at a Jakarta shopping mall said customers had bought more than 100 of the jackets, which sell for 899,900 rupiah (S$96) each, in just a few days and the store was trying to re-stock as quickly as possible.

REUTERS