Habibie's mixed-up ancestry

Habibie's mixed-up ancestry

To be forthright about one's ancestry is a laudable attitude
to take. Unfortunately, Habibie is adopting this stance at the
very time when everyone knows he has ambitions to be elected
President of Indonesia for the 1999-2004 term. His present claim
to be descended from an aristocratic Javanese family very clearly
demonstrates his desire to acquire that highest seat of power. We
regard his recent pilgrimage to his great-grandfather's grave to
have been inspired more by political considerations than personal
ones, as it properly should have been. It was a rudimentary way
of trying to win the affections of the Javanese.

All this gives us a lack of confidence in this presidential
aspirant. There is no better way, therefore, for us to respond to
this latest move by Habibie than to pity the man. There is also a
contradiction involved in his move: In eastern Indonesia, (a
region which staunchly supports Habibie), A.A. Baramuli is
fervently campaigning for this native son of Sulawesi. In
Jakarta, on the other hand, Habibie is proudly advertising his
Javanese ancestry. Our question is: Why are the advisers around
Habibie letting their man continue to make such fatal blunders?

-- Media Indonesia, Jakarta