Mt. Everest conqueror with VP

JAKARTA: Clara Sumarwati, the first Indonesian to reach the peak of Mount Everest, was accorded an audience with Vice President Try Sutrisno early this week.

Clara was accompanied by her trainer, Second Sergeant G. Basuki, and executive secretary to the Indonesian Women's Solo Climbing Expedition, Florentina.

She said when she reached the summit of the world's tallest mountain, 8,848 meters, on Sept. 26, she waved the red-and-white national flag and a picture of President Soeharto.

Clara, 29, is the first woman in Southeast Asia and the fourth in the whole of Asia to reach the top of Mount Everest.

She said she planned to retire and set up a mountaineering course. (pan)