Thousands jam funeral of YB Mangunwijaya

Thousands jam funeral of YB Mangunwijaya

YOGYAKARTA (JP): The city of Yogyakarta seemed to come to a
halt on Friday as crowds lined the roads passed by the funeral
procession of priest Y.B. Mangunwijaya.

The Catholic priest, better known as Romo Mangun, was well
known as a social worker and a writer. He died at 69 from heart
failure in Jakarta on Wednesday.

A crowd of about 30,000 lined seven kilometers of the
procession route from the Santo Fransiskus Xaverius church south
of Jl. Malioboro to the cemetery in the Santo Paulus seminary
complex in the Kentungan area.

Civilian security forces from various political parties and
East Timorese youths helped direct the flow of traffic for the
procession of vehicles reaching over two kilometers.

The white casket decorated with flowers was lowered into the
ground at 3:30 p.m. The six-hectare complex could hardly contain
the mourners who had been arriving since morning from the
surrounding areas of Semarang, Surakarta and Purworejo, besides
Yogyakarta.

Hundreds of farmers from Magelang came in their wide hats,
while dozens of residents from the former Kedung Ombo villages
arrived in an open truck. The villagers had been assisted in
their struggle against eviction by the late priest.

A mass was held at the church in the morning led by Semarang
Archbishop Ignatius Soeharyo. Yogyakarta monarch and governor
Sultan Hamengkubuwono X addressed the mass, saying that Romo
Mangun "dedicated his life to humanity".

Apart from officials, attendants included leading Balinese
Hindu figure Gedong Oka, soothsayer Permadi and priest Ignatius
Sandyawan Sumardi. The latter was not among those who traveled on
the plane taking the body from Jakarta as earlier reported.

Prayers for the dead were also held by Muslims grouped in the
Forum Persaudaraan Umat Beriman Yogyakarta (Yogyakarta
Brotherhood Forum of the Faithful).

Crowds also paid their last respects to the late priest on
Thursday at the Santo Fransiskus Xaverius church, among them
Surabaya Bishop Hadiwikarta.

Lusi, a student at the local Gadjah Mada University from East
Timor, said of Romo Mangun: "He was like our own father."

Another East Timorese, Joaquim, said Romo Mangun was one of
few Indonesian figures he respected. "Many have spoken of East
Timor, but he was among the few who went there and understands
our feelings."

Until Friday afternoon, expressions of condolence had filled
more than 10 two-meter-long pieces of cloth. (23/44)