Hartini

In this Indonesian name, there is no family name or patronymic.

Hartini
Hartini in 1954
Born	Siti Suhartini (1924-09-20)20 September 1924 Ponorogo, East Java, Dutch East Indies
Died	12 March 2002(2002-03-12) (aged 77) Jakarta, Indonesia
Other name	Hartini Sukarno
Known for	Wife of Sukarno

Siti Suhartini (20 September 1924 – 12 March 2002), better known as Hartini and also known as Hartini Sukarno, was the fourth wife of President Sukarno of Indonesia. Born to a forestry worker in Ponorogo, Hartini was married in her youth to a man named Suwondo, with whom she had five children. She met Sukarno in 1952, and after exchanging a series of pseudonymous love letters and receiving the blessings of his first wife Fatmawati, the two were married on 7 July 1953. Their union faced outrage, including protests from pro-monogamy women's organizations. Hartini was required to live at the Presidential Palace in Bogor rather than the main palace in Jakarta and was not recognized as first lady.

In the 1960s, Hartini began to assume more of the responsibilities expected of a first lady, though without the title. She also gained a reputation as a woman with influence on Sukarno, with whom she remained even as he continued to take wives. After the fall of Sukarno and transition to the New Order under President Suharto, Hartini remained with Sukarno until his death in 1970.

Early life

Hartini was born Siti Suhartini in Ponorogo, East Java, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) on 20 September 1924. The second of five children born to a forestry worker, she frequently moved during her childhood. She completed her primary studies in Malang, then was adopted by a man named Oesman and brought to Bandung, West Java, where she enroled at the Njiverheidschool—a school for teaching domestic skills. She later recalled that her parents had greatly emphasized the traditional role of women in Javanese culture, which she sought to embody in her marriages: "a wife should be a mother, friend, and lover to her husband".

In 1942, Hartini was arranged to be married to a man named Suwondo. The couple moved to Salatiga, Central Java. Their relationship produced five children before they separated. The status of their relationship at the time Hartini met President Sukarno is disputed. Some writers, such as the journalist Rosihan Anwar, described them as having separated by this time. Others, such as the biographer Peter Kasenda, wrote that Hartini and Suwondo were still married when she was romanced by Sukarno. Hartini denied the latter claim.

Relationship with Sukarno

Around 1952, Hartini met President Sukarno, at first as he was travelling to Yogyakarta to inaugurate the Syuhada Mosque, and later at Prambanan when he inaugurated the Ramayana Ballet. In his history of Indonesia, Anwar wrote that the two were introduced by General Gatot Soebroto; conversely, the historian John Legge identified their interlocutor as Major General Soehardjo Hardjowardojo. Hartini and Sukarno felt a mutual attraction, despite the 23-year age difference, and Sukarno began sending her love letters through an intermediary. He signed these with a pseudonym, Srihana, with Hartini being referred to as Srihani.

Hartini (centre) during a state visit by Norodom Sihanouk (left) and Norodom Monineath (right), 1964

On 15 January 1953, Sukarno asked his wife Fatmawati permission to take Hartini as a second wife; two days previously, Fatmawati had given birth to their son Guruh, the youngest of their five children. Fatmawati gave Sukarno her blessing, despite being against the union, and Sukarno proposed. Hartini initially refused, for fear that she would be seen as stealing another woman's husband. She agreed after Sukarno stated that he could not live without her and she would be his queen. Sukarno and Hartini were married on 7 July 1953 at the Presidential Palace in Cipanas. It was Sukarno's fourth marriage, as well as his first polygamous marriage.

Sukarno's marriage with Hartini faced outrage both due to its timing and the ongoing effort to pass a new monogamous marriage law. Women's organizations then campaigning against polygamy in Indonesia, including the Indonesian Women's Congress, decried the union and deemed it degrading to women. Several conducted protests outside the presidential palace, and members of the Indonesian Women's Movement (Gerwani) were reported to have thrown objects at Hartini's home in Salatiga. Newspapers such as Indonesia Raya and Pedoman carried editorials against the marriage. Meanwhile, although Fatmawati left the presidential palace, she remained married to Sukarno and retained the title of First Lady of Indonesia.

Through the 1950s Hartini was ostracized from Jakarta's high society and consciously excluded from major political events, including Mothers' Day celebrations as well as the 1955 Bandung Conference. Vice-president Mohammad Hatta was so angered by Sukarno's decision to abandon Fatmawati that he would leave a room if Hartini entered. Likewise, Hartini was not permitted to live at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta, and after a controversial attempt in 1955 she was not brought on official business. During this period, Hartini lived at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, with Sukarno visiting every Friday. The couple had two children, Taufan and Bayu.

In the mid-1960s, Hartini took on more roles expected of the first lady, though she did not officially hold the title. She met with numerous heads of state, including Akihito, Ho Chi Minh, and Norodom Sihanouk, and received invitations to represent Indonesia abroad. At the same time, Hartini exerted significant influence through and on Sukarno. When Cindy Adams was preparing her biography of the president, United States ambassador Howard P. Jones urged her to interview Hartini given the extent of her influence. Likewise, government officials—including Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI) leaders such as DN Aidit and Njoto—attempted to curry her favour, as this allowed them easier access to the president.

Nonetheless, Hartini did not have a monopoly on her husband. He refused to divorce Fatmawati, stating that he still loved her. Likewise, although Sukarno promised Hartini that she would be his last wife, he later married Ratna Sari Dewi in 1961, Haryati in 1963, and Yurike Sanger in 1964. In a 1999 interview, Hartini recalled, "He truly loved beauty, and the beauty found in women's graces," and stated that it had taken her three years to learn to accept Sukarno as he was.

Fall from power

Hartini's grave at Karet Bivak Cemetery

In September 1965, a coup was undertaken by a group identifying itself as the 30 September Movement (Gerakan 30 September, or G30S). The coup was blamed on the PKI. Subsequently, student demonstrations called for the dissolution of the party, as well as reduced inflation and the end of Sukarno's rule. Protests erupted in front of several presidential palaces. Among protestors' complaints were Sukarno's numerous wives. At Hartini's domicile in Bogor, students vandalized the walls with phrases such as "sarang sipilis" ("syphilis nest") and "lonte agung istana" ("grand palace whore"). This vandalism reportedly infuriated Sukarno, who called ten student representatives to his office and yelled at them. Hartini also faced accusations that she was aligned with leftist organizations, such as the now-banned Gerwani.

Ultimately, Sukarno was deposed, with Suharto taking the presidency after previously receiving permission to ensure security in Indonesia through the Order of Eleven March. After Sukarno's fall from power, he was left by his other wives. Hartini, however, remained with the former president until his death on 21 June 1970. Hartini recalled that she had spent four months with Sukarno at his bedside, the only one he would allow to treat him, as he sank into a depression amidst his house arrest. Sukarno's daughter Rachmawati wrote in her memoirs that, although she had been angered by Hartini's role in Sukarno's separation from Fatmawati, these feelings gave way to a new respect as Hartini faithfully accompanied her father.

By 1999, Hartini was living in Central Jakarta, filling her time with social activities and housework. In her old age, Hartini developed a heart condition, for which she received regular medical care. She died in Jakarta on 12 March 2002 at the Metropolitan Medical Centre Hospital in Jakarta, having spent three days in a coma. She was buried at Karet Bivak Cemetery, after a wake led by her stepdaughter: President Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Works cited

• "2 Said to Divorce Sukarno". The New York Times. 1 August 1969. p. 15.
• Alden, Robert (30 December 1955). "Sukarno Is Beset by Marital Woes: Wife No. 1 Reported Seeking to Divorce the President as Indonesians Differ". The New York Times. p. 3. ProQuest 113304635.
• Chairulia, Putri Atika (21 September 2025). "Pernah Nikah 9 Kali, Siapa Saja Istri Presiden Soekarno? Ini Profilnya" [Married 9 Times, Who Were the Wives of President Soekarno? Here Are Their Profiles] (in Indonesian). Antara. Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Erdian (28 July 2003). "Hartini Soekarno Meninggal Dunia" [Hartini Soekarno Dies]. Tempo (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Ichram, Yayi; Kleden, Hermien Y. (8 August 1999). "Hartini Sukarno: "Saya Tidak Merebut Bung Karno"" [Hartini Sukarno: "I Didn't Steal Bung Karno"]. Tempo (in Indonesian). Vol. 28, no. 24. p. 32.
• "Interview Met Mevrouw Hartini Soekarno" [Interview with Mrs. Hartini Soekarno]. De Vrije Pers (in Dutch). Surabaya. 22 September 1954. p. 1.
• "Hartini Soekarno". Encyclopedia of Jakarta (in Indonesian). Jakarta City Government. Archived from the original on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Kakiailatu, Toeti (17 March 2002). "Di Sana, Srihani Berjumpa dengan Srihana" [There, Srihani Met with Srihana]. Tempo (in Indonesian). Vol. 31, no. 3. p. 104. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Matanasi, Petrik (11 March 2018). "Ketika Sukarno Kepincut Hartini" [When Sukarno Was Taken by Hartini]. Tirto.id. Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Sitompul, Martin (20 April 2018). "Hartini, First Lady yang Tak Diakui" [Hartini, the Unrecognized First Lady]. Historia (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 16 November 2025. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Sitompul, Martin (24 April 2018). "Ketika Srihani Jadi Ibu Negara" [When Srihani Was First Lady]. Historia (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
• Sullivan, Charles P. (2020). Years of Dressing Dangerously: Modern Women, National Identity and Moral Crisis in Sukarno's Indonesia, 1945–1966 (PhD. dissertation). University of Michigan. ProQuest 2479689097.
• "The Fallout of the Duumvirate". Tempo. 19 August 2002. ProQuest 198892149.
• Tifada, Detha Arya (17 June 2021). "Soekarno Murka Istrinya Hartini Dicap 'Lonte Agung' oleh Mahasiswa Angkatan 66" [Sukarno Furious His Wife Hartini Branded 'Lonte Agung' by Class of '66]. Voice of Indonesia (in Indonesian). Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 18 June 2026.