JP/5/5PALACE

JP/5/5PALACE

Hangabehi crowned Surakarta sultan amid controversy

Blontank Poer
The Jakarta Post/Surakarta

Prince Hangabehi was crowned Sultan of Surakarta on Friday at
Surakarta Palace, succeeding his late father, Pakoeboewono XII,
marred by a controversy surrounding the legitimacy of the
succession.

High-ranking government officials were absent from the
ceremony in Surakarta, Central Java, which has been the site of a
power struggle between Hangabehi and Tejowulan, a half-brother
who was crowned Surakarta sultan two weeks earlier.

Friday's crowning ceremony was held amid high tension, and
hundreds of security personnel -- selected from among members of
the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and youth
group Pemuda Pancasila (PP) -- were on the alert in every corner
of the palace.

The PDI-P and PP belong to the Hangabehi camp, which is backed
by Princess Moertiyah, an outspoken PDI-P legislator.

Also on the scene were hundreds of policemen, who were
deployed to anticipate a possible clash during the crowning
ceremony between the supporters of the two princes.

The ceremony proceeded without incident as Hangabehi, the
eldest son of the late sultan, who died in June, climbed the
stairs to the central Sitihinggil building in the palace
compound.

Hangabehi vowed to protect the people of Surakarta and promote
people's welfare, and was crowned as Sultan of Surakarta.

While hundreds of guests attended the ceremony, none were
prominent government figures, although palace officials had
boasted earlier that distinguished guests would be present.

Tejowulan -- who was crowned two weeks ago outside the royal
compound, which was then under the control of Hangabehi's
supporters -- and his sympathizers within Surakarta Palace were
not to be seen.

Many regret the power struggle in Surakarta, including Merle
Calvin Ricklefs, a University of Melbourne historian, who wrote
in an-email to The Jakarta Post that a respected mediator needed
to be appointed to bring the conflict to an end so as to preserve
the integrity of Surakarta Palace in the eyes of its people.

A senior Surakarta Palace official, Prince Haryomataram,
concurred, saying the government had to step in.

The bitter feud arose when Pakoeboewono XII died without
naming his legitimate successor.

Hangabehi claimed his right to the throne as the eldest son,
but was hotly contested by Tejowulan and other members of the
royal family, who that Hangabehi was not credible and lacked
integrity, and was thus unfit to be sultan.