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As his future daughter-in-law participated in a traditional pre-wedding ceremony, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono denied that his youngest son’s pending marriage was intended to create a “love coalition” between his Democratic Party and the National Mandate Party.

Tuesday marked the first of three days of matrimonial ceremonies linking Yudhoyono’s son, Edhie Baskoro, known as Ibas, to politician Hatta Rajasa’s daughter, Siti Ruby Aliya.

Officials from the National Mandate Party (PAN) have said that Hatta, the party’s leader, is their only viable presidential candidate. Meanwhile, the current president’s party finds itself without an electable candidate as Yudhoyono ’s final term winds down.

According to “love coalition” speculation, the impending marriage was designed to give the Democratic Party a candidate it could support in Hatta.

Yudhoyono said, however, that Hatta’s daughter was Ibas’ personal choice.

“We ask for Allah’s blessing upon our plan to marry our sons and daughters Edhie Baskoro and his choice Siti Ruby Aliya Rajasa on November 24, 2011,” he said.

Whether or not the marriage represents the meeting of two political parties, it certainly does bring two of the archipelago’s cultures together.

While Ibas’ family is Javanese, Aliya’s is South Sumatran.

According to Yudhoyono, the union will combine these backgrounds in two dimensions: culture and religion.

“The traditions will be jointly Javanese and from Palembang, South Sumatra. For the wedding ceremony we will use Palembang traditions, and for the reception we will observe Javanese tradition,” Yudhoyono said in his introduction to an Islamic reading ceremony at his private residence on Tuesday in Cikeas, Bogor.

The president and his family hung a bleketepe woven palm leaf curtain on the front gate of their home, and after the reading they engaged in a traditional bathing ceremony, whereby the president poured water from seven special locations over his son. Hatta performed the same ceremony for his daughter at his home.

In a final traditional act, the Yudhoyono family released a young cockerel in front of their home before beginning a procession from Cikeas to Aliya’s home in Fatmawati, South Jakarta.

Upon reaching Aliya’s home, the participants were due to take part in the midodareni ceremony. During that ritual, the bride sits secluded in her room until midnight, when female members of her family and the bridegroom’s family arrive to give her useful advice for married life.

The actual wedding ceremony will take place on Thursday at the Cipanas state palace in Bogor, with a reception following two days later for 3,500 guests at the Jakarta Convention Center.

Yudhoyono said the traditional elements of the reception would likely enthrall foreign guests.

“In addition to the religious ceremony, elements based on Indonesian customs are of great interest to guests from friendly countries,” Yudhoyono said. “God willing, we will be able to conduct proceedings in as orderly and solemn a fashion as possible.”

As for the future of the Democratic Party’s two-term hold on the presidency, the deputy head of the party said the Ibas-Aliya union was no guarantee that his party would support Hatta as its candidate in 2014.

“Why mix love and politics?” Max Sopacua said. “People don’t fall in love because of political parties. They do it because of the attraction between two hearts.”

“This is a mere coincidence, and the idea of a coalition is just a public perception,” he said, adding that members of the Democratic Party had not yet discussed a presidential candidate.

“Anything can happen. We have promised we won’t choose a candidate until 2013,” he said. “And it’s not only the central leadership board that decides, but the entire party assembly. Yudhuyono’s in-laws are not a part of that.”