On January 12, 2009, Chinese President Hu Jintao sent a message of condolence to his Indonesian counterpart Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono after a passenger ferry capsized in the waters off Indonesia's Sulawesi island, causing heavy casualties and property losses. President Hu, on behalf of the Chinese government and people and in his own name, expressed his deep condolences to victims of the disaster as well as sincere solicitude to their families.