Sumitro dies at 84 of heart failure<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The father of modern Indonesian economics has
\npassed away. Sumitro Djojohadikusumo died in Jakarta of heart
\nfailure late on Thursday night. He was 84. His death brings to a
\nclose a life that was both fruitful and eventful.<\/p>\n
Sumitro was born in Kebumen, Central Java, on May 29, 1917,
\nthe eldest son in an aristocratic Javanese family. He spent his
\nchildhood in Java before moving to Europe, where he received his
\nacademic training, first at the prestigious Sorbonne University
\nin Paris and later at Economische Hogeschool (the College of
\nEconomics) in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.<\/p>\n
He first won recognition as an economist at the age of 29,
\nserving as an adviser to the Dutch delegation attending the
\nUnited Nations Security Council meeting in London in 1946.<\/p>\n
Returning home to Indonesia in March of that same year to take
\nhis place in the newly proclaimed Republic of Indonesia, he went
\non to serve a string of successive governments, first as an
\nassistant to prime minister Sutan Sjahrir in 1946 and later as
\nthe deputy chief delegate representing Indonesia at the UN
\nSecurity Council meeting at Lake Success in 1948.<\/p>\n
After the country received international recognition in
\nDecember 1949, Sumitro became charge d'affaires at the Indonesian
\nEmbassy in Washington, before becoming one of five experts
\nassisting the UN secretary-general.<\/p>\n
He served as minister of trade and industry (1950) and
\nminister of finance (1952) under president Sukarno, and was a
\nmember of president Soeharto's advisory team in 1968. He served
\nin several of Soeharto's Cabinets, as minister of trade in 1968
\nand minister of research and technology in 1973. He is also
\nremembered as a founder and dean of the University of Indonesia's
\nSchool of Economics.<\/p>\n
Seemingly secure in his professional and academic careers,
\nSumitro's life was nevertheless often full of turmoil. Charges of
\ncorruption, though never proven, beleaguered him as a Cabinet
\nminister in the 1950s, a time when the country was experimenting
\nwith parliamentary democracy and bitter political bickering was
\nthe order of the day.<\/p>\n
During the latter part of the 1950s, he became involved in
\nwhat is known as the PRRI-Permesta Affair, in which several
\ndisgruntled provinces in Sumatra and Sulawesi declared their
\nindependence from the central government in Jakarta. The movement
\nwas quickly crushed and Sumitro, with other backers of the
\nmovement, fled abroad.<\/p>\n
Sumitro and other supporters of the movement rejected
\nSukarno's offer of pardon and safe return on the condition they
\nrepent and recognize Sukarno's leadership.<\/p>\n
Eventually returning to Indonesia after the fall of the
\nSukarno regime in 1967, Sumitro carefully distanced himself from
\nthe banned and discredited Indonesian Socialist Party (PSI), of
\nwhich he had been an important member. This reinforced the image
\nof Sumitro as an opportunist, a label he had a difficult time
\nshedding, at least in the eyes of some.<\/p>\n
The marriage of his eldest son, Prabowo Subianto, a former
\nchief of the Army's Special Force and the Army Strategic Reserves
\nCommand, to Titiek Hediati, a daughter of then president
\nSoeharto, did little to dampen this view, even though some of his
\nstatements and criticisms of Soeharto's policies leave little
\ndoubt he remained true to his ideals to the end.<\/p>\n
As an economist, Sumitro was a prolific writer and some of his
\nworks have become accepted as standard textbook material at
\nuniversities throughout the country.<\/p>\n
Though fate dictated that he should be embroiled in politics
\nfor much of his life, economics always remained at the center of
\nSumitro's interests. In that respect, it is difficult to find an
\nIndonesian economist who can match Professor Sumitro in his
\ndedication to his chosen profession and his desire to use his
\nconsiderable knowledge for the good of the country. (hpr)<\/p>",
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