The King And The Republic

The Sultan's Winding Road

Yogyakarta was in mourning. The body of Hamengku Buwono IX lay in the Kiai Ratapralaya-a funeral carriage-and was being carried 17 kilometers from the keraton (royal palace) to the royal Imogiri cemetery. Yogyakarta-nor the grateful nation-will ever forget that moving scene, when hundreds of thousands of residents flocked to the funeral procession to pay their final respects. Older women dressed in traditional attire bowed and cried as the coffin passed. Their beloved king was no more, having passed away on October 3, 1988, at the Embassy Row Hotel in Washington DC.

Hamengku Buwono IX was an extraordinary man. Throughout his life, he was known mostly as a social and cultural figure. His political and economic roles were rarely discussed, despite the fact that he held many key political and economic positions in the early years of the nation, including as defense minister of the Republic of the United States of Indonesia (RIS), economics, finance and industry minister, and vice president. At the time of his death, he had retired from politics. In fact, he had withdrawn from all political activities after stepping down as vice-president during the Suharto era. He avoided conflict and preferred to say little, a stance which led to many interpretations.