Farewell, Pak Habibie
By Andrew Mohanraj
15 September 2019
Figure 1: Fond memories: The writer with Pak Habibie. — Supplied
MY first meeting with BJ Habibie, who died, aged 83, on Wednesday, was in 2011. I remember being ushered into the book-lined study at the late Indonesian President’s Jalan Cibubur house situated in the quaint part of Jakarta Timur. He was clearly pleased when he noticed me admiring his vast collection of books.
Having lived in Jakarta for six years, I made many friends there but Pak Habibie, whom I later addressed simply as Pak Rudy, was unique. He was introduced to me by his sister, Ibu Sudarsono Habibie, a humanitarian worker and one of Indonesia’s finest daughters.
Ibu Sri and I had collaborated on various development projects and she suggested that I share my ideas with Pak Habibie. From then on, I met him on many occasions, often discussing various topics of mutual interest which also included his contributions to the aviation industry. He was known as the Technology Czar or Father of Aviation in Indonesia, having launched the N250 prototype, a completely indigenous commercial aircraft.
He was animated when he spoke on any subject, indicating his scholarship and a deeply inquiring mind. He could give a discourse on Western classical music or Javanese philosophy with equal ease. Oddly, until today he remains the only non-Javanese President of Indonesia. He was groomed and handpicked to lead the country by General Suharto who was said to be some sort of a Javanese mystic. Pak Habibie’s loyalty to Pak Suharto knew no bounds, even at the expense of being labelled Suharto’s stooge, although at times he did surprise many as being his own man as the third President of Indonesia.
In 1998, during the height of public unrest and economic turmoil, Pak Habibie was sworn in as the leader of a populous, chaotic and economically-challenged country. A year earlier, help had been sought from the International Monetary Fund to institute economic reforms. One of the first recommendations was to abandon the expansion of Indonesia’s aviation industry because it was deemed financially unviable, even a “waste of state funds”. Pak Habibie spoke about this in anguish several times over the years we met. He was certain that “big powers” had intentionally derailed Indonesia’s aviation industry to ensure Asia did not have a place in the skies.
However, his greatest anguish in life must have been the death of his wife, Ibu Ainon in 2010. He was struck with grief that he never really overcame. He immortalised her in his book, Habibie & Ainum (2010), which was made into a movie of the same name in 2012; it was followed by Rudy Habibie in 2016, depicting his early life. Pak Habibie and Ibu Ainon were blessed with two sons, Tarieq and Ilham.
Another blow followed when his long-time friend and trusted aide Pak Watik, himself a PhD-holder and a university lecturer, died about five years ago. When I met Pak Habibie several years after that, the aura at Jalan Cibubur was not quite the same. Pak Habibie, well-known for speaking rapidly in shrill tones with much animated gesturing, seemed subdued. Slightly diminutive in physique, he described himself then as a “small man in a big house”. I suspected that he was alluding to his loneliness and his continued pining for his departed wife.
As an individual, Pak Habibie reminded me of the values of loyalty and dedication to duty, more than anything else. He also impressed me with his appreciation for esoteric things in life and his demonstration that abiding love does exist in this world despite the cynicism and mistrust that surround our lives.
As a public figure, he showed statesmanship when he ended discriminatory practices against minorities, publicly apologised for past human rights abuses, and vowed to build a just and democratic Indonesia.
His push for a referendum on Timor Leste and the territory’s subsequent attainment of independence was not looked at favourably, not only in Indonesia but even in some neighbouring countries. Yet he persisted, demonstrating that reconciliation and forgiveness is possible.
Pak Habibie was never really a politician. History will remember him instead as a true statesman who happened to be a scientist.
Datuk Dr Andrew Mohanraj is a consultant psychiatrist who developed community mental health services in several countries in the region.
Full Article :https://www.thestar.com.my/news/regional/2019/09/15/farewell-pak-habibie
Dr. Andrew Mohanraj 