Son of Prominent Figure Lived in Poverty, Refused to Capitalise on Parents' Name for Success
Recently, the public has often been presented with stories of children of high-ranking state officials who achieve various positions and successes by relying on their parents’ great names. By carrying a widely recognised family name, they hope to more easily gain the attention, sympathy, and respect of others.
However, children of officials and anyone who has been in a similar position can learn from the figure of Soesalit.
His name was not as popular as his biological mother’s, R.A. Kartini. Nevertheless, Soesalit’s lack of popularity was actually his personal choice. He did not wish to pursue the path to success by exploiting his mother’s great name, Kartini.
How Did It Unfold?
In his time, Soesalit was quite a fortunate child. He was born into an official’s family because his father, Raden Mas Adipati Ario Djojadiningrat, served as Bupati of Rembang. History would later record that his mother, Kartini, became a significant figure due to her visionary thinking that transcended her era.
Nevertheless, Soesalit did not wish to rely on his parents’ great names to build his life. Wardiman Djojonegoro in Kartini (2024) recounts that Soesalit was actually entitled to succeed his father as bupati. However, he firmly declined. Many relatives repeatedly asked Soesalit to take the position, but his answer was consistently refusal.
Instead, he chose to join the military in 1943. He was trained by the Japanese army and subsequently joined the Defenders of the Homeland (PETA). When Indonesia achieved independence, Soesalit practically became part of the Indonesian Republic’s People’s Security Forces. From there, his career gradually flourished.
According to Sitisoemandari Soeroto in Kartini: A Biography (1979), Soesalit was always involved in several battles against the Dutch, which quickly resulted in his promotion. His name likewise became increasingly well-known.
The peak of his success as a soldier came in 1946. He was appointed Commander of Division II Diponegoro, which led the most important forces tasked with protecting the nation’s capital in Yogyakarta.
He even held several civilian posts at times. One of these was as an adviser to the Defence Minister in Ali Sastroamidjojo’s Cabinet in 1953.
When this occurred, few people knew that Soesalit was the son of Indonesia’s great figure R.A. Kartini. He deliberately did not sell his mother’s great name.
Throughout his life, Kartini’s stories repeatedly became an inspiration and continued to be told by many generations regarding a woman who championed equality through her letters. Even at that time, a song about his mother titled “Our Mother Kartini” by W.R Soepratman had already become popular and continued to be sung by many.
Soesalit’s superior, General Nasution, witnessed how he truly did not publicise his parents’ names. Nasution observed that when Soesalit was no longer in service, he preferred to live in poverty as a veteran. He did not claim his veterans’ rights.
According to Nasution, quoted from Kartini: A Biography (1979), he could easily have lived without poverty by stating that he was Kartini’s only son. In doing so, many people would take pity on him, which could change the life of the two-star general.
However, Soesalit maintained the principle he had instilled from the beginning: he did not wish to declare that he was Kartini’s descendant. As a result of this principle, the man born in Rembang remained in poverty until his death on 17 March 1962.