Surakarta royals avoid succession talks<\/p>\n
Sri Wahyuni and Blontank Poer, Surakarta\/Yogyakarta<\/p>\n
Thousands of people poured into Surakarta Palace to pay their
\nlast respects to traditional ruler Paku Buwono XII on Sunday
\nwhile the royal family refrained from discussing the succession.<\/p>\n
National red-and-white flags flew at half-mast across the
\nCentral Java town in a show of grief following the death of the
\nsultan on Friday.<\/p>\n
Mourners included President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Army Chief
\nof Staff Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu and a number of Cabinet ministers
\nwho visited the royal family on Saturday. Golkar Party
\npresidential candidate Wiranto and leader Akbar Tandjung paid
\nhomage to the sultan on Friday.<\/p>\n
It was business as usual at Klewer traditional market, located
\nclose to the palace, but some buyers from outside the town said
\nthey went shopping only after paying their last respects to Paku
\nBuwono XII, who died aged 79.<\/p>\n
\"I often buy goods in the market, but today I spared some time
\nto pay homage to the sultan,\" said Suryanto from the provincial
\ncapital, Semarang.<\/p>\n
The royal family has allowed the general public to pay their
\nlast respects to the sultan, whose body was laid out at Parasedya
\nSasana Sewaka hall.<\/p>\n
During a meeting on Saturday evening, the family avoided any
\ndiscussion on the succession.<\/p>\n
\"Such talks will be held after the period of mourning,\" leader
\nof the royal family Prince Hadi Prabowo said.<\/p>\n
\"We prefer to focus on preparations for the sultan's funeral.
\nThe announcement about the successor will be made 40 days after
\nthe sultan's death.\"<\/p>\n
Paku Buwono XII, who rose to the throne on June 12, 1945, did
\nnot nominate any of his six concubines as queen; therefore there
\nwas no crown prince.<\/p>\n
\"Each of his sons stands an equal chance of succeeding the
\nsultan,\" Prince Haryomataram, a son of the late Paku Buwono X,
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Paku Buwono XII will be buried at the Astana Girimulya royal
\ncemetery in Imogiri, some 20 kilometers southeast of the
\nneighboring town, Yogyakarta, on Monday.<\/p>\n
According to a royal employee at the cemetery, the sultan's
\nbody would moved from Surakarta Palace at around 8 a.m. on Monday
\nin a special carriage before being taken to Imogori in a motor
\nvehicle.<\/p>\n
Before the funeral, the sultan's body will be laid out at
\nKotagede Grand Mosque, Kotagede, Yogyakarta, for prayers. Further
\nprayers will be performed when the remains of the sultan are
\ntaken to the mosque inside the cemetery compound.<\/p>\n
Paku Buwono XII will be buried next to the graves of his
\nfather Paku Buwono XI and grandfather Paku Buwono X.<\/p>\n
\"This will be a special ritual,\" said the palace
\nofficial.<\/p>\n
The last sultan to be buried in the royal cemetery was former
\nvice president Hamengku Buwono IX, the father of Yogyakarta
\ngovernor Hamengku Buwono X, who died in October 1988.<\/p>\n
Imogiri royal cemetery is divided into eight different
\nsections; each is allocated to the noble families of both the
\nYogyakarta and Surakarta palaces. The sections are for Kasultanan
\nAgung, Paku Buwono, Kasuwarga Yogyakarta, Besiyaran Yogyakarta,
\nSaptorenggo Yogyakarta, Kasuwarga Surakarta, Kapingsangan
\nSurakarta and Girimulyo Surakarta.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/surakarta-royals-avoid-succession-talks-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}