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Ani Yudhoyono funeral provides moment of national unity
Former and current government officials, as well as politicians from opposite sides, gathered on Sunday at the Yudhoyono family home in Cikeas, Bogor, West Java, as well as the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in South Jakarta, where Ani was laid to rest.
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Indonesia's sixth president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (center) stands with First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo, fifth president Megawati Soekarnoputri (third from right) and third president BJ Habibie (third from left) during the funeral procession of former first lady Kristiani Herrawati, better known as Ani Yudhoyono, at the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in South Jakarta on Sunday. (Antara/Puspa Perwitasari)
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or many Indonesians, funerals have a uniting factor that inspires people to travel long distances to pay their last tribute to the deceased and console a family who has lost a loved one. This was particularly true for the funeral procession of former first lady Kristiani Herrawati, better known as Ani Yudhoyono, which brought a rare moment of reconciliation during a politically divisive election season.
Former and current government officials, as well as politicians from opposite sides, gathered on Sunday at the Yudhoyono family home in Cikeas, Bogor, West Java, as well as the Kalibata Heroes Cemetery in South Jakarta, where Ani was laid to rest.
Ani, who would have been 67 in July, was the wife of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. She died in Singapore on Saturday following a four-month fight against blood cancer and is survived by her husband, two sons, two daughters-in-law and four grandchildren.
Winning vice presidential candidate and Muslim cleric Ma’ruf Amin led the funerary prayers at Cikeas, where Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan and Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto, among others, prayed together side-by-side.
