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Tangerang, Banten (ANTARA News) - A number of ministers came to Soekarno-Hatta airport to welcome the arrival of the late Indonesian actor Sophan Sophiaan whose body was flown from Solo`s Adi Sumarmo airport on Saturday afternoon.

At the VIP room of Soekarno-Hatta airport`s cargo terminal were seen Transportation Minister Jusman Syafei Jamal, Minister/State Secretary Hatta Rajasa and Industry Minister Fahmi Idris.

They came to the airport to welcome the arrival of the body of Sophan Sophiaan who was killed in an accident in Ngawi, East Java, at 9.50 am on Saturday.

The politician and film actor who rose to fame in the 1970s Sophan Sophian died before he arrived at Sragen hospital after he had the motorcycle accident.

The accident took place in Planglor village at KM 18-19 of Ngawi-Solo road at 9.30 am. He was riding his Harley Davidson when the motorcycle he was riding fell into a road hole.

Sophan was participating in a cross-Java Harley Davidson Club Indonesia (HDCI) convoy in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Indonesia`s National Awakening Day.

Some 270 motorcyclists participated in the parade which started from Jakarta on April 12, 2008, and headed for Rengas Dengklok, Cirebon, Pekalongan, Semarang, Rembang, Tuban and Surabaya. They are expected to reach the finish at Monas (the National Monument), Jakarta, on May 20.

The convoy was heading from Kediri, East Java, to Solo, Central Java, when the accident took place.

Sophan Sophian following the accident was rushed to the Sragen Hospital in Central Java, from where his body was flown to Jakarta through Solo`s Adi Sumarmo airport.

Chairperson of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) Megawati Soekarnoputri through his personal assistant, Ari Junaedi, expressed her deep condolences to Sophan Sophiaan`s family over the demise of Sophiaan, her close colleague when she established PDIP a few years ago.

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