YOGYAKARTA: Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, who is on a four-day state visit to Indonesia, had an audience with the Sultan of Yogyakarta Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X, who is also Governor of the Special Region of Yogyakarta, here today.
Sultan Abdullah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah were met on arrival at the Keraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat or the Royal Palace of Yogyakarta by Sri Sultan and his wife, Queen Consort Gusti Kanjeng Ratu Hemas.
The official music of Sri Sultan, known as Gendhing Prabu Mataram, echoed in the palace grounds to welcome the arrival of the Malaysian King and Queen and their entourage.
Sultan Abdullah and Tunku Azizah were then ushered into the Gedhong Jene in the palace for a closed-door audience with Sri Sultan and Ratu Hemas, which lasted about 15 minutes.
Sultan Abdullah’s visit to the Keraton had its own significance as his late father, Paduka Ayahanda Sultan Ahmad Shah, during his reign as the seventh Yang di-Pertuan Agong, had also visited the Sultanate of Yogyakarta in 1981 and had an audience with Sri Sultan’s late father, Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX.
After the audience, the Malaysian King and Queen were entertained by a Javanese classical dance, Tarian Lawung Jajar, which illustrates the high spirit of soldiers during the era of Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono I.
Their Majesties also spent some time in the palace’s exhibition room, which displays various royal artefacts and historical items.
Tunku Azizah, who is passionate about fabric and design, spontaneously took the opportunity to paint batik at the palace. Batik painting is a cultural heritage of Yogyakarta and is well known among the aristocrats of Keraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat.
Their Majesties were then escorted to the Bangsal Manis for a luncheon hosted by Sri Sultan and Ratu Hemas.
The friendship of Sultan Abdullah and Sri Sultan was evident, reflecting the good relations that further strengthen the Islamic sultanate institutions in the archipelago.
Sri Sultan who has ruled Yogyakarta since 1989 is the only Sultan who was democratically elected as the Governor of the special region.
The Yogyakarta Sultanate institution is also the only one which still exists in Indonesia and functions as the regional government of the republic.
The audience with Sri Sultan was the first programme in the Malaysian royal couple’s itinerary for their visit here.
Both Sultan Abdullah and Tunku Azizah are scheduled to visit several historical sites here including Kotagede, to see the silver crafting industry, as well as the Borobudur Temple, before returning to Malaysia tomorrow. -- Bernama