Puan Maharani Recalls Fatmawati Being A Proud Figure

JAKARTA - The House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker, Puan Maharani, remembers her grandmother, Fatmawati, as a proud and inspiring figure.

"Mrs. Fatmawati is not only the pride of our family, but she is also the pride of the Bengkulu people and the pride of the Indonesian nation", Puan said in a written statement quoted by Antara, Saturday, May 14.

Exactly today, 42 years ago, Indonesia lost its first First Lady, Fatmawati.

Fatmawati died on May 14, 1980, at the age of 57 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, due to a heart attack while on her way home for Umrah from Makkah.

Fatmawati's grandson has always used Fatmawati as an inspiration.

Fatmawati's struggle to support Soekarno in proclaiming and defending Indonesia's independence, Puan assessed, was not only a wife's dedication to her husband but also a citizen of her country and nation.

Inspire

"One of the most inspiring stories from Mrs. Fatmawati is how she helped to sew the Red and White Flag, which was hoisted during the Proclamation of Independence", said Puan.

Puan said that at that time it was not easy to get red and white cloth the size of a flag.

All ex-imported goods are in Japanese hands.

Fatmawati also had to ask for help from Shimizu, the person appointed by the Japanese government as an intermediary in the Japan-Indonesia negotiations.

Shimizu then worked it out through a Japanese dignitary, who headed the warehouse at the Sluice in front of the former Capitol Cinema.

With great difficulty, Fatmawati finally got the fabric and sewed it.

"That's the flag that flew in East Pegangsaan during the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence", she said.

Fatmawati spent her time sewing the flag in a fairly vulnerable physical condition.

The reason, Fatmawati was pregnant at that time and it was time to give birth to her eldest son, Guntur Soekarnoputra.

Fatmawati sewed the flag in stages with a Singer sewing machine which was operated only by hand. Because the doctor forbade him to use his feet to move the sewing machine.

Not infrequently, Fatmawati shed tears when sewing the flag. However, Fatmawati did not stop sewing the flag until it was finished because she believed that Indonesia would soon become independent.

"For me, Ms. Fatmawati is a person who has vision and foresight. For her services, we the Indonesian people have the Red and White heritage flag which was sewn with her own hands and prepared before Indonesia's independence", said Puan.