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Kutai Sultanate asks Ganjar to establish fund for Indonesian monarchs
The Kutai Kartanegara Sultanate asked Ganjar to allocate funds for Indonesian monarchs if elected to help kingdoms across Indonesia maintain customs and culture.
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Ganjar Pranowo, presidential candidate of the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), and his running mate Mahfud MD pose for photographs after registering themselves at the General Elections Commission headquarters in Jakarta, on Oct. 19, 2023. (Reuters/Willy Kurniawan)
The Kutai Kartanegara ing Martapura Sultanate has asked Ganjar Pranowo to provide special funds for kingdoms across Indonesia if he is elected president during his visit to the palace in Kutai Kartanegara regency, East Kalimantan.
“With all due respect, we ask you [if you are elected president] to create a presidential regulation [that] allocates budget for the legitimate sultanates across Indonesia,” Kutai Kartanegara Sultanate representative Prince Notonegoro said on Wednesday, as quoted by Antara news agency.
Notonegoro said the fund establishment could help Indonesia’s sultanates and kingdoms maintain customs, arts and culture.
The prince also highlighted that Japan maintained its traditional values because of respect for the empire. This was an important asset for a nation to survive in the 4.0 industry era.
“Kutai Kartanegara regency, where the Kutai Kartanegara ing Martadipura Sultanate, the oldest kingdom in Indonesia, is located, should not be forgotten,” Notonegoro said.
Following Indonesia’s independence from the Netherlands in 1945, most of the kingdoms and sultanates ceased to exist as sovereign units. Despite losing their sovereignty, many of them maintain their presence as custodians of traditional culture and customs in their previous territory.
The only exception is the Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat Sultanate in Yogyakarta, which was conferred special status in Indonesia in 1950, where the reigning sultan is automatically the governor of the province.
