Megawati Sukarnoputri
Megawati Sukarnoputri ( Megawati Soekarnoputri in the old spelling) [ megaˈwati sukarnoˈputri ] (born January 23, 1947 in Yogyakarta , Indonesia ) is an Indonesian politician and was the state president of her country from July 2001 to October 2004 . In the first direct election of the president in October 2004, she was defeated by her challenger and successor Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the second ballot . However, she is still active in politics. Megawati is currently chairman of the PDI-P party she founded in 1996 .
Political career
Megawati is the daughter of the first president of Indonesia Sukarno and his third wife Fatmawati . Megawati studied agricultural science at Padjadjaran University in Bandung . She finished her studies in 1967 without a degree when her father, then President Sukarno, got into political difficulties and was eventually forced out of office. Sukarno was forced to hand over his position to General Suharto and was placed under house arrest. The family was ordered not to be politically active. In 1970 Sukarno died and Megawati began studying psychology at the University of Indonesia, which she dropped out after two years.
Megawati lived as a housewife for 20 years, married three times and had three children. Still, she was seen early on as her father's political heir. In 1987 she joined the PDI ( Democratic Party of Indonesia ), which was tolerated by the Suharto military government and gave the regime a democratic look. Megawati became a MP and in 1993 chairman of the PDI. She had little political experience, but quickly became a popular opposition politician. She benefited from her origins, her personal integrity and the fact that she was not involved in corruption . Under Megawati's leadership, the PDI gained some influence and support, especially among the poor and middle classes.
It was not until 1996 that the still-ruling military government realized that Megawati was a threat and was ousted from the PDI. Unrest in the capital Jakarta was the result, Megawati was unable to take part in the 1997 parliamentary elections. Their popularity was only bolstered by these measures. Due to the Asian crisis in 1997, the increasing public anger over degenerating corruption and finally the fall of Suharto in 1998, Megawati's popularity continued to grow. The PDI-P party (“militant democratic party of Indonesia”), which she founded, won a third of the votes in the first free parliamentary elections in 1999, making it the strongest party. The PDI-P is now the main opponent of the dominating Golkar , the PDI has been dissolved.
Presidency 2001 to 2004
Since the parliament elected the president under the then new constitution, Megawati was the most promising candidate. As a woman, however, she encountered reservations in the Islamic country. First of all, her confidante Abdurrahman Wahid became President and she became Vice-President. After Wahid was dismissed, Megawati was elected president on July 23, 2001.
Megawati continued Habibie and Wahid's reform course. However, she rather fulfills the role of the representative and symbol of national unity than of setting a clear political direction as the head of government. The military retained its influence and corruption remained the order of the day, although it was not accused of any offenses.
2004 presidential election
A new constitutional amendment resulted in the first direct election of the president in 2004. The unemployment and poverty in Indonesia was still high and the gloss Megawati had given way to many followers of disappointment. In the first ballot she got the second most votes, in the runoff she was ultimately defeated by her former security advisor Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono .
Meaning of the name
Megawati is the daughter of the first Indonesian President Sukarno . '-Putri' is an Indonesian suffix for "daughter of ...". Sukarnoputri is therefore not an actual surname, as it is unusual in Java anyway.
Megawati is a common name in Indonesia that comes from Sanskrit . 'Mega' means cloud, '-wati' is a suffix that denotes a female name. The name means something like "Cloud girl, daughter of Sukarno" and is due to the cloudy weather on the day Megawati's birth.
Individual evidence
- ↑ [1] BBC News: Profile: Megawati Sukarnoputri, May 21, 2001, accessed February 2, 2010
- ↑ [2] Handelsblatt: Megawati new President of Indonesia, July 23, 2001, accessed on February 2, 2010
- ↑ [3] ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Deutsche Welle: Indonesia has turned democracy, September 21, 2004, accessed on February 2, 2010
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Megawati Sukarnoputri |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Indonesian politician, President of Indonesia |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 23, 1947 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Yogyakarta , Indonesia |