Yogya Needs a Sultanah( A Queen)

Why Yogyakarta needs a sultanah now?

The decision of the sultan Hamengkubuwono X to appoint his first daughter to be the next sultanah is also a significant move which can be considered as a part of reform within the Kraton Yogyakarta. There is no doubt again to say that the present sultan is aware that it is a time now that a woman should govern Yogyakarta. The sultan is aware that patriarchal must be abolished and this must be done directly from his own decree to appoint his daughter to be the sultanah.

There is no doubt that the Sultan understood that it is not a taboo to appoint a woman to be be the sultanah, and this thing in fact had already happened in Nusantara, especially in the kesultanan of Aceh. South East Asian is known to be the lesser patriarchal society in the World, and Indonesian society is known for this noble tradition. And the ascension of women to be the leaders of the state is not even taboo in Islamic societies. We have Ibu Megawati Sukarnoputri who had been an Indonesian president after Gus Dur. In Pakistan,the late benazir Bhutto came to power for several years, and in Bangladesh, almost two decades, only the women have been appointed as the prime minister.

And if the puteri of the sultan really comes to the office of sultanah in the future, we expect she would be able to make further reform within the Kraton Yogyakarta through appointing more women to have important rôle in the kraton. And she should also appoint a muslim woman( Nyai) to replace the Kiai Kraton. Man and women are equal in the face of God ( the holy Koran).