Kaesang Remembers Suharto As The Father Of Development During Pilgrimage At Astana Giri Bangun

JAKARTA - Chairman of the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI), Kaesang Pangarep, visited and laid flowers at the graves of Indonesia's second president, Soeharto, and his wife, Siti Hartinah, known as Ibu Tien Soeharto, at the Giri Bangun Palace in Karanganyar, Central Java, on Saturday evening.

The visit also coincided with the birthday of the late Ibu Tien Soeharto, who was born on August 23, 1923, and passed away on April 28, 1996.

"Thank God, the series of events to visit the graves of all the deceased presidents has concluded tonight. On this last night, thank God, we had the opportunity to visit the graves of Indonesia's second president at the Giri Bangun Palace, and thank God, everything went smoothly," said Kaesang, as quoted by ANTARA on Sunday, August 24.

Kaesang remembered Pak Harto, Soeharto's nickname, as the Father of Development, who built much infrastructure that still stands strong today, supporting various aspects of Indonesian life.

"This second president is the father of Indonesia's development; he built many facilities," he said.

The son of the 7th President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, understands that no human is perfect, and neither did Pak Harto, who made mistakes during his lifetime. However, it cannot be denied that Soeharto's contributions can still be felt today.

He also quoted the Javanese philosophy of mikul duwur mendem jero, which means upholding the goodness of others while deeply harboring their shortcomings.

"There's a quote that I think is also good for us to learn from: mikul duwur mendem jero. If there's good, we exalt it, but if there's bad, we suppress it. Why? After all, humans are not perfect creatures; they certainly make mistakes, but we as Indonesians must still respect all the presidents who have contributed to this republic," he said.

Kaesang began his pilgrimage to the graves of Indonesian presidents by visiting the grave of the third President of the Republic of Indonesia, Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie, at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery (TMP), South Jakarta, on Friday morning (August 22nd).

In addition to Habibie's grave, Kaesang also visited and laid flowers at the graves of former People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker Taufik Kiemas and Kristiani Herrawati, better known as Ani Yudhoyono.

He then visited the graves of the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Indonesia, Sutan Sjahrir, the third Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia, and founder of the National News Agency (LKBN) ANTARA, Adam Malik, and several other national heroes.

That same day, Kaesang then headed to East Java to visit the grave of the fourth President of the Republic of Indonesia, Abdurrahman Wahid, also known as Gus Dur, located in the Tebu Ireng Islamic Boarding School complex in Jombang Regency, East Java, on Friday afternoon.

After visiting Bung Karno's tomb,

Kaesang concluded his pilgrimage with a visit to the tomb of Indonesia's second president, Soeharto, at Astana Giri Bangun, Karanganyar, Central Java.