Tutut tries to polish family's tarnished crown

Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

When Soeharto's eldest daughter Siti Hardijanti "Tutut" Rukmana recently came forward as a possible challenge for President Megawati Soekarnoputri, the daughter of first president Sukarno, some political parties, including Soeharto's former party, Golkar, played down its significance.

But amid growing frustration about the slow progress the country has achieved since Soeharto's fall in 1998, Tutut's presence has attracted attention. But does Tutut, known as the more generous one compared to her five siblings, really want the presidential seat?

Daniel Sparringa, a political scientist at the Surabaya-based Airlangga University, said Tutut's main motive was to restore the former first family's tainted image.

People's longing for security and better economic conditions will be Tutut's tool to clean up the image of the Soeharto family.

"For Tutut, losing or winning the election is not a big deal. What matters for her is that she has the chance to rehabilitate the negative image of the Soeharto's clan," Sparringa said.

He explained that even if Tutut failed to win the presidential race, or if the Concern for the Nation Functional Party (PKPB) failed to nominate her, she had successfully made people envisage a return to the Soeharto era.

Tutut would not dare to gamble the Soeharto family's future if she was not convinced that many people in Indonesia feel very nostalgic for the relatively stable situation under her father's regime, Sparringa noted.

Although Soeharto's children were often said to be his weakest point, as their business activities grew mainly because of their father's position, Tutut's social work is still remembered by many people. Tutut herself held a Cabinet position as the social affairs minister, just three months before her father's fall in May 1998.

"Tutut has appealed to all people to join her party and support her in her bid for the presidency so that the stability of the New Order could be reestablished," he said.

With her political vehicle, the PKPB, which is chaired by her long-time friend and PKPB chairman, Gen. (ret) Raden Hartono, she launched a massive campaign about the good things done during her father's tenure.

PKPB executive Hakimi Malik said that PKPB would be quite dry without Tutut because the party was not yet well-known.

"The party needs Tutut and Tutut needs the party, that's how it goes here. All of the party activists have a similar perception that we should defend the Soehartos as they have done a lot for us and this country," said Hakimi.

Aside from her demure smile and generosity, Tutut's other strong point is her family's wealth, a factor that is very important in Indonesia's political world.

Despite Soeharto's fall, their businesses remain operational and profitable, although now they prefer to play a role behind the scenes.