History Today, June 17, 1991: President Suharto Arrives In Jeddah For Hajj

JAKARTA – Today's history, 31 years ago, June 17, 1991, President Suharto arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Suharto's arrival in order to perfect the Pillars of Islam: the pilgrimage. He's not alone either. The Smiling General goes on a pilgrimage accompanied by his family. From his children to his son-in-law.

Suharto revealed that his departure to the Holy Land was purely because of religion. However, most of the audience thinks otherwise. Political content is allegedly behind it. Moreover, one year after the presidential election will take place.

Suharto's decision to make the pilgrimage for the first time caused a stir in all corners of the country. Suharto's plan to go to the Holy Land was also eaten by the mass media. Suharto said that the plan to go to the Holy Land should not be linked to a political agenda or anything else.

He and his family just want to carry out religious orders solemnly. The Cendana Family delegation departed from Jakarta for the Holy Land on June 16, 1991. The day after that, the Cendana Family arrived in Jeddah. The momentum of Suharto's arrival in Jeddah was greeted with great fanfare.

The Governor of Mecca, Prince Majid bin Abdul Azis, who represented King Fahd came to welcome the Cendana Family. All kinds of first-class facilities are also provided. In fact, the Cendana Family got a special camp in Arafah.

The sandalwood family also used the opportunity to go on a pilgrimage to visit the graves of the Prophet Muhammad, Abu Bakr Ash-Siddiq, and Umar bin Khattab. That trip became the most memorable moment in the life of Suharto and his family.

“In 1991, Suharto went on pilgrimage to Mecca for the first time. After that, he bore the name Haji Muhammad Suharto. He seeks the support of prominent bumiputra entrepreneurs, who usually exhibit a strong sense of Islamic identity.”

“In 1990-1991, Suharto appealed to the cukong and big companies to give shares to the Bumiputra rulers. These efforts do not have far-reaching impacts and may only make them realize how big the role of the cukong is and make Indonesians of Chinese ethnicity the main target of criticism,” said historian MC Ricklefs in the book History of Modern Indonesia 1200-2004 (2007).

President Soeharto's desire to go on a pilgrimage to carry out religious orders was doubted by many. The worship was considered as Suharto's political agenda. Moreover, Suharto himself was known as an adherent of Javanese science.

Instead of hearing Suharto's excuses, many of them believed his agenda to go for hajj was merely a political ruse. Moreover, one year ahead the 1993 presidential election will be rolling. There are also many assumptions that if Suharto wanted to, the pilgrimage agenda could be carried out in advance. However, reality says otherwise.

“In 1991, Suharto and his family performed the pilgrimage. At that time, many political observers did not see Suharto's pilgrimage to pilgrimage as something serious. In Jakarta at that time, some people tended to see the move as more of a political ruse ahead of the 1993 presidential election. On the eve of his departure for the Holy Land, the East Java NU leaders, Kiai Haji Misbah and Dr. Saleh Aljufri, who met him in Cendana.”

“Soeharto explained that in fact he had planned to go for Hajj since the first Pelita (five-year development) period, but it was canceled. During Pelita II it failed, during Pelita III it was only time to perform Umrah, and during Pelita IV it was canceled again. Suharto said: only in Pelita V I am afraid of God to delay returning because I know that going for Hajj is obligatory,” concluded Salim Said in the book From Gestapu to Reform: A Series of Testimonies (2013).

President Soeharto's departure to perform the pilgrimage is part of today's history, June 17, 1991 in Indonesia.