Thousands pay homage to Sukarno<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of people converged on the East Java
\ntown of Blitar yesterday to pay homage to Sukarno, Indonesia's
\nfounding father and first president, who died 28 years ago.<\/p>\n
The commemoration of his death saw a much greater turnout than
\nin past years, thanks largely to the greater cooperation of the
\nlocal administration in the current reform atmosphere, according
\nto dispatches received here yesterday.<\/p>\n
This was in contrast to past practices in which authorities
\nwent out of their way to play down the significance of the event,
\noften by declining to issue the necessary permits until the last
\nminute.<\/p>\n
Almost all of Sukarno's offspring were present in Blitar, his
\nhometown where he was buried. His three eldest daughters were
\ncertainly present: Sukmawati and Rahmawati arrived Friday, while
\nMegawati came late yesterday escorted by her supporters in the
\nIndonesian Democratic Party.<\/p>\n
The commemoration included the usual prayers, Koran readings
\nand Islamic sermons. Reflecting the greater freedom of expression
\ndue to the country's reform movement, this year also saw a poetry
\nreading on the agenda, with Sukmawati among the contributors.<\/p>\n
The ceremonies were held in two different venues: the Sukarno
\nmausoleum in Bendogerit Cemetery, and the family's residence on
\nJl. Sultan Agung some three kilometers away.<\/p>\n
Sukarno's relatives have said that the commemoration was
\nstrictly a family affair and that they had not sent out any
\ninvitations, not even to government officials. But as in past
\nyears, the observance of his death was open to the public.<\/p>\n
Reuters reported that about 35,000 people descended on Blitar
\nyesterday. With the town's hotels and inns fully booked, many
\nlocal residents opened their doors to visitors wishing to spend
\nthe night.<\/p>\n
Antara, however, put the crowd at more than 500,000, with
\nbuses arriving from as far away as Jakarta and Sumatra.<\/p>\n
Roads leading both to the grave site and the family home were
\njammed with people, rickshaws and motorcycles. Cars were
\nprevented from entering the roads when the crowds started to
\nswell in the morning.<\/p>\n
The large turnout attests to the popularity of Sukarno,
\nIndonesia's president between 1945 and 1966. He died June 21,
\n1970 in official, but not popular, disgrace. He was impeached by
\nthe Provisional Consultative Assembly in 1966 for his failure to
\ncondemn a communist rebellion a year earlier.<\/p>\n
\"He (Sukarno) is still in the hearts of the people because his
\nteachings and ideals sprang from the people's hearts,\" Rahmawati
\ntold reporters at the family home.<\/p>\n
\"That's why, despite having passed away 28 years ago, he has
\nnot been forgotten or passed into history.\"<\/p>\n
Asked why the numbers were larger this year, Rahmawati said:
\n\"In this era of reform which is freer, people are not so scared
\nor worried to come here,\" she was quoted by Reuters as saying.<\/p>\n
A member of Sukarno's household in Blitar said the family
\nwould not travel this year in the 1961 Mercedes owned by
\nSukarno's elder sister Wardoyo for the short drive from the
\nresidence to the cemetery as they had in previous years.<\/p>\n
\"The old car is in poor condition and almost beyond repair,\"
\nIslan told Antara.<\/p>\n
He said the car was Sukarno's favorite and that he had always
\ninsisted on riding in it each time he came to Blitar to visit his
\nsister.<\/p>\n
Police deployed more than 2,000 personnel, including members
\nfrom the local military, to ensure security and order.<\/p>\n
Kediri Police chief Col. Rubani Pranoto, whose jurisdiction
\ncovers Blitar, said he had given strict orders to his men not to
\nhesitate to clamp down on troublemakers.<\/p>\n
He said his forces included personnel from the Army's
\nStrategic Reserves Command (Kostrad), the Police Bomb Squad, the
\nRapid Reaction Force and an antiterrorist unit.<\/p>\n
The organizers also arranged security measures.<\/p>\n
The head of the security task force, Samandi, dismissed the
\nlikelihood of trouble, saying that people were simply coming to
\npay homage to their hero.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, he said he was not taking any chances,
\nespecially in view of rumors that there could be riots.<\/p>\n
The organizers recruited 400 local youths trained in martial
\narts to help ensure order. They were joined by some 900 Megawati
\nsupporters who volunteered to take part in the security
\narrangements.<\/p>\n
A family of 35 was seen at the grave site early in the
\nmorning. They had traveled by bus the previous night from the
\ntown of Purwokerto in Central Java, a distance of some 275 km
\n(170 miles) through mountainous terrain.<\/p>\n
\"We came here to commemorate all the good he (Sukarno) did for
\nthe country,\" said Naitoman, a 35-year-old woman who was one of
\nthe family's daughters-in-law.<\/p>\n
A group of youths were seen sitting by the grave site. One of
\nthem, Simun, said he was part of a group of 90 people from the
\ntown of Nganjuk in East Java, Reuters reported.<\/p>\n
\"My entire village is here. There are 90 of us,\" he said. \"We
\nvalue what he did for the country. We will wait here until his
\nchildren arrive. We won't be satisfied until we catch a glimpse
\nof them.\"<\/p>\n
If Sukarno's family had its way, this would probably be one of
\nthe last, if not the last, commemorations to be held in Blitar.<\/p>\n
Sukmawati said the family had long hoped to relocate Sukarno's
\ngrave to the family residence in Batu Tulis, in Bogor just
\noutside Jakarta, in accordance with his last wish.<\/p>\n
The decision to bury Sukarno in Blitar was made by the
\ngovernment of then president Soeharto in spite of objections from
\nthe family.<\/p>\n
\"I'm saddened because we have not been able to fulfill his
\nlast wish all this time,\" Sukmawati said.<\/p>\n
Rahmawati, however, said the issue was still being discussed
\nby the family and that no final decision had been made.<\/p>\n
\"It's on the agenda. That's all. But it's not the time to talk
\nabout the issue right now,\" she said. (emb)<\/p>",
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