Raden Ayu Siti Hartinah (23 August 1923 – 28 April 1996), also known as Siti Hartinah Soeharto or Tien Soeharto, was the first lady of Indonesia from 1967 until 1996. She was the wife of second Indonesian president, Suharto. Known as Ibu Tien in Indonesia, she was widely acknowledged to have been politically powerful, and a close confidant and political advisor to Suharto.

Biography

Siti Hartinah was related to the Mangkunegaran Royal household and descendant of Mangkunegara III from her mother's side. Some commentators state that her honorific title of Raden Ayu was reserved only for faithful courtiers (abdi dalem) of the Mangkunegaran court. She married Suharto on 26 December 1947 in Surakarta using a traditional Javanese ceremony. Suharto stated that the marriage was initially not one of romantic love, but they did eventually grow to love each other devotedly, a type of marriage that was very common for many Javanese of that era. Three days after their marriage, Siti Hartinah was taken by Suharto to live in his Yogyakarta house at Jalan Merbabu 2. Her marriage was initiated by Suharto's foster mother at the time, Ibu (Mrs) Prawirowiharjo, who sought an audience with her mother. Ibu Prawirowiharjo cultivated a close relationship with her mother, a family in Suharto's own words as "well regarded and respected in the city of Solo" Siti Hartinah became known in Indonesia as "Madame Tien". Many Javanese saw her as one of the major causes of Suharto's own power. Siti Hartinah died of heart failure on 28 April 1996 in Jakarta, after which she was posthumously rendered a National Hero of Indonesia. They are interred beside one another in the Astana Giribangun mausoleum complex in Karanganyar Regency, Central Java.

Family

Suharto and Siti Hartinah had six children: Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana (Tutut), Sigit Harjojudanto (Sigit), Bambang Trihatmodjo (Bambang), Siti Hediyati Hariyadi (Titiek), Hutomo Mandala Putra (Tommy) and Siti Hutami Endang Adiningsih (Mamiek).

Citations

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