Siswono's daughter dies

Siswono's daughter dies

JAKARTA (JP): The daughter of the Minister of Transmigration
Siswono Yudohusodo died in Jerusalem yesterday at 2 a.m., local
time, after being treated for thalassemia.

Emeralda, 11, left Jakarta with her mother, Mrs. Ratih
Yudohusodo on March 30 for treatment at the Hadasah hospital.

Emeralda was diagnosed four years ago as suffering from
thalassemia.

Titut Pusponegoro, an older sister of Siswono, confirmed that
Emeralda underwent a bone marrow transplant in April.

Another relative said Siswono left on Wednesday for Jerusalem,
where a number of family members were already gathered.

"It seems that Emeralda was waiting for her father," the
relative told The Jakarta Post by telephone.

The body of Emeralda, the third of four children, will be
brought back to the Siswono's home on Jl. Abdul Madjig 48, in
Cipete, South Jakarta, and is expected to arrive tomorrow
morning.

Emeralda, a fifth grader of the Tarakanita elementary school
on Jl. Monginsidi, South Jakarta, will be buried at either the
nearby Jeruk Purut or at the Tanah Kusir cemetery, the relative
said.

Before leaving for Jerusalem, Emeralda, known to be "a bright
child," could study normally, except at times when her hemoglobin
level dropped.

She would have turned 11 years old on July 25.

Thalassemia is a hereditary disease which affects red blood
cells, known to afflict three to eight percent of the population
here. (anr)