Megawati Sukarnoputri

Megawati Sukarnoputri was born in Yogyakarta to Sukarno, who had declared Indonesia's independence from the Netherlands 2 years prior in 1945 and Fatmawati, a Minang descended from Inderapuran aristocracy, one of his nine wives.

Megawati Sukarnoputri was Sukarno's second child and second daughter.

She grew up in her father's Merdeka Palace.

She danced for her father's guests and developed a gardening hobby.

Diah Permata Megawati Setiawati Sukarnoputri (born 23 January 1947) is an Indonesian politician who served as the fifth president of Indonesia from 2001 to 2004.

Megawati Sukarnoputri was 19 when her father relinquished power in 1966 and was succeeded by a government which eventually came to be led by President Suharto.

Megawati Sukarnoputri attended Padjadjaran University in Bandung to study agriculture but dropped out in 1967 to be with her father following his fall.

In 1970, the year her father died, Megawati Sukarnoputri went to the University of Indonesia to study psychology but dropped out after two years.

In 1986, Suharto gave the status of Proclamation Hero to Sukarno in a ceremony attended by Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Suharto's acknowledgment enabled the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), a government-sanctioned party, to campaign on Sukarno nostalgia in the lead-up to the 1987 legislative elections.

Up to that time, Megawati Sukarnoputri had seen herself as a housewife, but in 1987 she joined PDI and ran for a People's Representative Council (DPR) seat.

The PDI accepted Megawati Sukarnoputri to boost their own image.

Megawati Sukarnoputri quickly became popular, her status as Sukarno's daughter offsetting her lack of oratorical skills.

Although PDI came last in the elections, Megawati Sukarnoputri was elected to the DPR.

Like all members of the DPR she also became a member of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

Megawati Sukarnoputri was not reelected, but continued as a PDI member.

In December 1993, the PDI held a national congress.

As was always the case when New Order opposition parties held their congresses, the government actively interfered.

As the Congress approached, three individuals contended for the PDI chair.

The incumbent, Suryadi, had become critical of the government.

The second was Budi Harjono a government-friendly figure whom the government backed.

The third was Megawati Sukarnoputri.

Her candidacy received such overwhelming support that her election at the Congress became a formality.

When the congress assembled, the government stalled and delayed attempts to hold the election.

The congress faced a deadline when their permit to assemble would run out.

As the hours ticked down to the end of the congress, troops began gathering.

She previously served as the eighth vice president from 1999 to 2001.

Megawati Sukarnoputri is Indonesia's first and to date only female president and the fifth woman to lead a Muslim-majority country.

She is also the first Indonesian president and as of 2023 the only vice president to be born after Indonesia proclaimed its independence in 1945.

After serving as vice president to Abdurrahman Wahid, Megawati Sukarnoputri became president when Wahid was removed from office in 2001.

She ran for re-election in the 2004 presidential election, but was defeated by Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

She ran again in the 2009 presidential election, but Yudhoyono defeated her for a second time.

Megawati Sukarnoputri was instrumental in creating the Corruption Eradication Commission, an agency task to combatting corruption in Indonesia.

She also set up a general election system for the first time, in which the Indonesian people can directly elect the president and vice president, in addition to electing candidates for the legislature.

As a result, she was given the title "Mother of Upholding the Constitution".

She is the first and current leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), one of Indonesia's largest political parties.

She is the eldest daughter of Indonesia's first president, Sukarno.

Her name, Sukarnoputri (meaning "daughter of Sukarno"), is a patronym, not a family name; Javanese often do not have family names, similarly Minang living outside of traditional nagari society often do not carry on matrilineal clan names.

She is often referred to as simply Megawati or Mega, derived from Sanskrit meaning 'cloud goddess'.

In a speech to the students of the Sri Sathya Sai Primary School, she mentioned that Indian politician Biju Patnaik named her at Sukarno's request.