Independence fighter Roeslan Abdulgani dies
Independence fighter Roeslan Abdulgani dies
One of the last men standing after the independence struggle,
Roeslan Abdulgani, died on Wednesday morning at the Gatot Subroto
Army Hospital, due to lung infection and a stroke.
He was 91 years old and is survived by five children, one of
whom was a member of the presidential medical team who had been
treating him for almost the last two weeks, Hafild Abdulgani.
Roeslan's wife Sihwati Nawangwulan died several years ago.
"He once stopped breathing for some time but later his
condition returned to normal, before he finally died," medical
team head Brig. Gen. Mardjo Subiandono said.
Defying the effects of the stroke he suffered a year ago,
Roeslan managed to attend a discussion held in conjunction with
the birth of state ideology Pancasila on June 1.
Two weeks later, he was admitted to the hospital after passing
out at home and was then ushered to the Intensive Care Unit until
he died.
His remains will be buried at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in
South Jakarta on Thursday in a military ceremony led by
Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs
Adm. (ret.) Widodo Adi Sucipto.
Many VIPs were seen paying their last respects on Wednesday at
his house in Jl. Diponegoro 11, Central Jakarta, including
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf
Kalla.
"Pak Roeslan was a fighter, a diplomat, a statesman. Everyone
must follow his position of never speaking ill of anyone," Susilo
said.
Also paying homage were Cabinet ministers, former ministers,
and former long-time ruler Soeharto, who had visited Roeslan
twice at the hospital.
Roeslan, or Cak (brother) Roes as he used to be affectionately
called, was born in Surabaya, East Java, on Nov. 24, 1914.
He first entered the political world at the age 17 when he
joined the Indonesia Moeda youth movement, which was an
amalgamation of youth organizations. He was elected chairman of
the Indonesia Moeda Central Board in 1936.
As a result of his activities, Roeslan was arrested several
times by the Dutch police, and was dismissed from the European
Training Institute (Europese Kweekshool).
He then came into close contact with Indonesian political
leaders, joining Angkatan Muda (Youth Generation) which was aimed
at gaining freedom from Japan.
He was also part of an underground movement against Japanese
rule in Surabaya in 1945 when Soekarno proclaimed Indonesia's
independence.
Roeslan played a key role in the success of the Asia-Africa
Conference in Bandung in 1955, in which 29 leaders from the two
continents participated. He even lived to recount the moment as
the Asian-African Summit was held last April.
His last political role was an advisor to the Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). He later joined the chorus
of demand for internal reform within the party following its
defeat in the legislative and presidential elections last year.
People from all walks of life felt a deep loss with Roeslan's
death with condolences pouring into local radio stations.
"Cak Roes' passion and spirit must be passed on to our
children," Nany Bachtiar, a Surabaya resident, told a radio
program.