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Indonesia’s “father of development†dead at 86
An enemy of communism has passed:
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - President Bush offered his "condolences" on Sunday on the death of Suharto, a Cold War ally whose 32 years of rule saw his country through a period of "remarkable" development.
President Suharto of Indonesia dead
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - President Bush offered his "condolences" on Sunday on the death of Suharto, a Cold War ally whose 32 years of rule saw his country through a period of "remarkable" development.
The US ambassador to Jakarta Cameron Hume hailed Suharto as an “historic figure” who “achieved remarkable economic development” for his country. “President Suharto led Indonesia for over 30 years, a period during which Indonesia achieved remarkable economic and social development, and left a lasting imprint on Indonesia and the region of Southeast Asia,” the ambassador said.
In a state funeral with military honours, the late ex-president's coffin was lowered following a short speech by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and covered with rose and jasmin petals by close family members. The body of Suharto was buried in the Javan city of Solo after being flown from Jakarta today. Hundreds of people gathered outside the airport in Solo to watch the arrival of the military plane carrying Suharto's casket, which was to be driven to the family mausoleum outside of the Central Java city. Suharto's plane was the last to land in a procession of aircraft carrying relatives and officials from Jakarta, television pictures showed.
Suharto, who died yesterday aged 86 three weeks after going into hospital with heart, lung and kidney complaints, ruled Indonesia for 32 years until he stepped down in 1998. His body lay at a family residence in a leafy district of Jakarta overnight before being taken through the streets in a motorcade to a military airport watched by a waving crowd of tens of thousands.
The air force Hercules transport carrying Suharto's body was greeted in Solo by an honour guard of about 100 military soldiers and police. Hundreds of people gathered outside the airport, which was temporarily closed to other flights, to watch the procession pass. Heads of state and representatives from Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand arrived by planes at the airport earlier today.
"Former president Suharto was one of the longest-serving heads of government of the last century and an influential figure in Australia's region and beyond. Former Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer said Suharto had a "fine" human rights record but he understood how important Australia was to his country.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his deputy, Yusuf Kalla, immediately went into a crisis meeting to discuss the next steps.
Dr Yudhoyono said soon afterwards: "Let us give the highest honour to our nation's greatest son, for the service he has provided. I also would like to call on the people of Indonesia to show the highest respect to one of the nation's best sons, a great leader of the nation who has contributed so much service and dedication to the nation and thestate."
Streets in central Jakarta linking the hospital where he died and the unassuming bungalow where Suharto saw out his post-leadership years were quickly closed to traffic yesterday afternoon, to allow his body to be transported home for washing.
Indonesian flags at the residence were quickly lowered and hundreds of thousands of supporters converged on foot outside the house on Jalan Cendana - or Sandalwood Street - to welcome home their former leader's body. Suharto's six children were at his bedside during his final hours.
Though he was widely regarded as one of the 20th century's most progressive leaders, peers and admirers such as former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad and Singaporean founder Lee Kuan Yew expressed dismay in recent weeks that his legacy was being ignored.
Although he presided over consistent growth of more than 6 per cent during his rule, critics say the figure could have been much higher were it not for its reliance on the per annum accounting system.
Suharto, who died yesterday aged 86 three weeks after going into hospital with heart, lung and kidney complaints, ruled Indonesia for 32 years until he stepped down in 1998. His body lay at a family residence in a leafy district of Jakarta overnight before being taken through the streets in a motorcade to a military airport watched by a waving crowd of tens of thousands.
The air force Hercules transport carrying Suharto's body was greeted in Solo by an honour guard of about 100 military soldiers and police. Hundreds of people gathered outside the airport, which was temporarily closed to other flights, to watch the procession pass. Heads of state and representatives from Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand arrived by planes at the airport earlier today.
"Former president Suharto was one of the longest-serving heads of government of the last century and an influential figure in Australia's region and beyond. Former Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer said Suharto had a "fine" human rights record but he understood how important Australia was to his country.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his deputy, Yusuf Kalla, immediately went into a crisis meeting to discuss the next steps.
Dr Yudhoyono said soon afterwards: "Let us give the highest honour to our nation's greatest son, for the service he has provided. I also would like to call on the people of Indonesia to show the highest respect to one of the nation's best sons, a great leader of the nation who has contributed so much service and dedication to the nation and thestate."
Streets in central Jakarta linking the hospital where he died and the unassuming bungalow where Suharto saw out his post-leadership years were quickly closed to traffic yesterday afternoon, to allow his body to be transported home for washing.
Indonesian flags at the residence were quickly lowered and hundreds of thousands of supporters converged on foot outside the house on Jalan Cendana - or Sandalwood Street - to welcome home their former leader's body. Suharto's six children were at his bedside during his final hours.
Though he was widely regarded as one of the 20th century's most progressive leaders, peers and admirers such as former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad and Singaporean founder Lee Kuan Yew expressed dismay in recent weeks that his legacy was being ignored.
Although he presided over consistent growth of more than 6 per cent during his rule, critics say the figure could have been much higher were it not for its reliance on the per annum accounting system.
Indonesia's former President Suharto, an army general who crushed Indonesia's communist movement was the US's Cold War ally and opened the way for democracy in this predominantly Muslim nation of 235 million people. Some noted Suharto oversaw decades of economic expansion that made Indonesia the envy of the developing world.
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