Sukarno[d] (bornKoesno Sosrodihardjo;[e] 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970)[5] was an Indonesian statesman, orator and revolutionary who was the firstpresident of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967.
After atumultuous period ofparliamentary democracy, Sukarno introduced anauthoritarian system known as "Guided Democracy" in 1959 to restore stability and suppress regional rebellions. By the early 1960s, Sukarno pursued an aggressive foreign policy and positioned Indonesia as a leading voice in theanti-imperialistNon-Aligned Movement (NAM). These policies increased tensions with Western powers and brought Indonesia closer to theSoviet Union, despite being a non-communist state. The culmination of this policy wasCONEFO, Sukarno's plan for a new United Nations based in Jakarta.[7]
Suharto officially became president in 1967, while Sukarno was placed underhouse arrest until his death in 1970. He wasburied inBlitar, East Java, next to his mother. During the first few years of Suharto'sNew Order regime, Sukarno's role in the country's independence and his earlier achievements were minimized, and his name was largely removed from public discourse. However, as opposition against Suharto increased with his eventualfall in 1998, public interest in Sukarno was revived in tandem todemocratic reforms. Today, his legacy as thefounding father of Indonesia and a symbol of national unity and independence continues to be widely respected by manyIndonesians, often more so than that of Suharto.[14]
The nameSukarno comes from the mythological chief hero of theMahabharata,Karna.[15] The spellingSoekarno, based onDutch orthography, is still in frequent use, mainly because he signed his name in theold spelling. Sukarno himself insisted on a "u" in writing, not "oe," but said that he had been told in school to use the Dutch style, and that after 50 years, it was too difficult to change his signature, so he still signed with an "oe."[16] Official Indonesian presidential decrees from the period 1947–1968, however, printed his name using the1947 spelling. TheSoekarno–Hatta International Airport, which serves the area near Indonesia's capital,Jakarta, still uses theDutch spelling.
He is sometimes referred to in foreign accounts asAchmed Sukarno, or some variation thereof. A source from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealed that "Achmed" (later, written as "Ahmad" or "Ahmed" by Arab states and other foreign state press) was coined by M. Zein Hassan, an Indonesian student atAl-Azhar University and later a member of the staff at the Ministry, to establish Sukarno's identity as aMuslim to the Egyptian press after a brief controversy at that time in Egypt alleging Sukarno's name was "not Muslim enough." After the use of the name "Achmed" began,Muslim andArab states freely supported Sukarno. Thus, in correspondence with theMiddle East, Sukarno always signed his name as "Achmed Sukarno."[19][20]
Sukarno with his father, Raden Soekemi Sosrodihardjo (left), and with his mother, Ida Ayu Nyoman Rai (right).
The son of a Muslim Javanese primary school teacher, apriyayi named RadenSoekemi Sosrodihardjo [id] who hailed fromGrobogan, Central Java, and his Hindu Balinese wife from theBrahmin caste namedIda Ayu Nyoman Rai [id] fromBuleleng, Bali, Sukarno was born inSurabaya, East Java, in theDutch East Indies (now Indonesia), where his father had been sent following an application for a transfer toJava.[21] He was originally namedKusno Sosrodihardjo.[22] Following Javanese custom, he was renamed after surviving a childhood illness.
After graduating from a native primary school in 1912, he was sent to theEuropeesche Lagere School (a Dutch primary school) inMojokerto. Subsequently, in 1916, Sukarno went to aHogere Burgerschool (a Dutch-type higher-level secondary school) in Surabaya, where he metTjokroaminoto, anationalist and founder ofSarekat Islam. In 1920, Sukarno married Tjokroaminoto's daughter Siti Oetari. In 1921, he began to studycivil engineering (with a focus onarchitecture) at theTechnische Hoogeschool te Bandoeng (Bandoeng Institute of Technology), where he obtained anIngenieur degree (abbreviated as "Ir.", a Dutch-typeengineer's degree) in 1926. During his study inBandung, Sukarno became romantically involved withInggit Garnasih, the wife of Sanoesi, the owner of the boarding house where he lived as a student. Inggit was 13 years older than Sukarno. In March 1923, Sukarno divorced Siti Oetari to marry Inggit (who also divorced her husband Sanoesi). Sukarno later divorced Inggit and married Fatmawati.
In his studies, Sukarno was "intensely modern", both in architecture and in politics. He despised both the traditional Javanesefeudalism, which he considered "backward" and to blame for the fall of the country under Dutch occupation and exploitation, and theimperialism practised byWestern countries, which he termed as "exploitation of humans by other humans" (exploitation de l'homme par l'homme). He blamed this for the deep poverty and low levels of education of the Indonesian people under the Dutch. To promotenationalistic pride amongst Indonesians, Sukarno interpreted these ideas in his dress, in his urban planning for the capital (eventually Jakarta), and in hissocialist politics, though he did not extend his taste for modern art topop music; he had the Indonesian musical groupKoes Bersaudara imprisoned for their allegedly decadent lyrics despite his reputation for womanising. For Sukarno, modernity was blind to race, neat and elegant in style, and anti-imperialist.[24]
After graduation in 1926, Sukarno and his university friend Anwari established the architectural firm Soekarno & Anwari in Bandung, which provided planning and contractor services. Among Sukarno's architectural works are the renovated building of the Preanger Hotel (1929), where he acted as assistant to famous Dutch architectCharles Prosper Wolff Schoemaker. Sukarno also designed many private houses on today's Jalan Gatot Subroto, Jalan Palasari, and Jalan Dewi Sartika in Bandung.
Later on, as president, Sukarno remained engaged in architecture, designing the Proclamation Monument and adjacentGedung Pola in Jakarta; the Youth Monument (Tugu Muda) inSemarang; the Alun-alun Monument inMalang; the Heroes' Monument in Surabaya; and also the new city ofPalangkaraya inCentral Kalimantan. Sukarno was also deeply involved in building theGelora Bung Karno Sports Complex which includes him proposing the design for the roof ofits main stadium.[25][26]
Sukarno was first exposed to nationalist ideas while living under Tjokroaminoto. Later, while a student in Bandung, he immersed himself inEuropean,American, nationalist,communist, and religious political philosophy, eventually developing his own political ideology of Indonesian-stylesocialist self-sufficiency. He began styling his ideas asMarhaenism, named after Marhaen, an Indonesian peasant he met in the southern Bandung area, who owned his little plot of land and worked on it himself, producing sufficient income to support his family. In university, Sukarno began organizing a study club for Indonesian students, theAlgemeene Studieclub, in opposition to the established student clubs dominated by Dutch students.
On 4 July 1927, Sukarno with his friends from theAlgemeene Studieclub established a pro-independence party, theIndonesian National Party (PNI), of which Sukarno was elected the first leader. The party advocated independence forIndonesia, and opposed imperialism andcapitalism because it opined that both systems worsened the life of Indonesian people. The party also advocatedsecularism and unity amongst the many different ethnicities in the Dutch East Indies, to establish a united Indonesia. Sukarno also hoped thatJapan would commence a war against thewestern powers and that Indonesia could then gain its independence withJapan's aid. Coming soon after the disintegration of Sarekat Islam in the early 1920s and the crushing of theIndonesian Communist Party after itsfailed rebellion of 1926, the PNI began to attract a large number of followers, particularly among the new university-educated youths eager for broader freedoms and opportunities denied to them in the racist and constrictive political system of Dutch colonialism.[27]
Sukarno with fellow defendants and attorneys during his trial inBandung, 1930
PNI activities came to the attention of the colonial government, and Sukarno's speeches and meetings were often infiltrated and disrupted by agents of the colonial secret police (Politieke Inlichtingendienst). Eventually, Sukarno and other key PNI leaders were arrested on 29 December 1929 by Dutch colonial authorities in a series of raids throughout Java. Sukarno himself was arrested while on a visit toYogyakarta. During his trial at the BandungLandraad courthouse from August to December 1930, Sukarno made a series of long political speeches attacking colonialism and imperialism, titledIndonesia Menggoegat (Indonesia Accuses).[28]
In December 1930, Sukarno was sentenced to four years in prison, which were served in Sukamiskin prison in Bandung. His speech, however, received extensive coverage by the press, and due to strong pressure from the liberal elements in both theNetherlands and the Dutch East Indies, Sukarno was released early on 31 December 1931. By this time, he had become a popular hero widely known throughout Indonesia.
However, during his imprisonment, the PNI had been splintered by the oppression of colonial authorities and internal dissension. The original PNI was disbanded by the Dutch, and its former members formed two different parties; theIndonesia Party (Partindo) under Sukarno's associateSartono who were promoting mass agitation, and the Indonesian Nationalist Education (New PNI) underMohammad Hatta andSutan Sjahrir, two nationalists who recently returned from studies in the Netherlands, and who were promoting a long-term strategy of providing modern education to the uneducated Indonesian populace to develop an intellectual elite able to offer effective resistance to Dutch rule. After attempting to reconcile the two parties to establish one united nationalist front, Sukarno chose to become the head of Partindo on 28 July 1932. Partindo had maintained its alignment with Sukarno's own strategy of immediate mass agitation, and Sukarno disagreed with Hatta's long-term cadre-based struggle. Hatta himself believed Indonesian independence would not occur within his lifetime, while Sukarno believed Hatta's strategy ignored the fact that politics can only make real changes through formation and utilisation of force (machtsvorming en machtsaanwending).[27]
During this period, to support himself and the party financially, Sukarno returned to architecture, opening the bureau of Soekarno & Roosseno with his university juniorRoosseno. He also wrote articles for the party's newspaper,Fikiran Ra'jat (People's Mind). While based in Bandung, Sukarno travelled extensively throughout Java to establish contacts with other nationalists. His activities attracted further attention by the DutchPID. In mid-1933, Sukarno published a series of writings titledMentjapai Indonesia Merdeka ("To Attain Independent Indonesia"). For this writing, he was arrested by Dutch police while visiting fellow nationalistMohammad Hoesni Thamrin in Jakarta on 1 August 1933.
This time, to prevent providing Sukarno with a platform to make political speeches, the hardline governor-generalJonkheerBonifacius Cornelis de Jonge utilised his emergency powers to send Sukarno to internal exile without trial. In 1934, Sukarno was shipped, along with his family (including Inggit Garnasih), to the remote town ofEnde, on the island ofFlores. During his time in Flores, he utilised his limited freedom of movement to establish a children's theatre. Among its members was future politicianFrans Seda. Due to an outbreak of malaria in Flores, the Dutch authorities decided to move Sukarno and his family to Bencoolen (nowBengkulu) on thewestern coast of Sumatra, in February 1938.[29]
In Bengkulu, Sukarno became acquainted with Hassan Din, the local head of theMuhammadiyah organization, and he was allowed to teach religious teachings at a local school owned by the Muhammadiyah. One of his students was 15-year-oldFatmawati, daughter of Hassan Din. He became romantically involved with Fatmawati, which he justified by stating the inability of Inggit Garnasih to produce children during their almost 20-year marriage. Sukarno was still in Bengkulu exile when the Japaneseinvaded thearchipelago in 1942.
In early 1929, during theIndonesian National Revival, Sukarno and fellow Indonesian nationalist leader Hatta (laterVice President), first foresaw a Pacific War and the opportunity that a Japanese advance on Indonesia might present for the Indonesian independence cause.[30] On 10 January 1942,Imperial Japan invaded the Dutch East Indies quickly defeating Dutch forces who marched, bussed and trucked Sukarno and his entourage three hundred kilometres from Bengkulu toPadang,Sumatra. They intended keeping him prisoner and shipping him to Australia but abruptly abandoned him to save themselves upon the impending approach of Japanese forces on Padang.[31]
Sukarno shaking hands with the Japanese director of the interior for occupiedDutch East Indies, GeneralMoichiri Yamamoto, September 1944
The Japanese had their own files on Sukarno, and the Japanese commander in Sumatra approached him with respect, wanting to use him to organize and pacify the Indonesians. Sukarno, on the other hand, wanted to use the Japanese to gain independence for Indonesia: "The Lord be praised, God showed me the way; in that valley of the Ngarai I said: Yes, Independent Indonesia can only be achieved with Dai Nippon...For the first time in all my life, I saw myself in the mirror of Asia."[32] In July 1942, Sukarno was sent back to Jakarta, where he re-united with other nationalist leaders recently released by the Japanese, including Hatta. There, he met the Japanese commander GeneralHitoshi Imamura, who asked Sukarno and other nationalists to galvanise support from the Indonesian populace to aid the Japanese war effort.
Sukarno was willing to support the Japanese, in exchange for a platform for himself to spread nationalist ideas to the mass population.[33][34] The Japanese, on the other hand, needed Indonesia's workforce and natural resources to help its war effort. The Japanese recruited millions of people, mainly from Java, to be forced labour calledromusha in Japanese. They were forced to build railways, airfields, and other facilities for the Japanese within Indonesia and as far away asBurma. Additionally, the Japanese requisitionedrice and other food produced by Indonesian peasants to supply their troops, while forcing the peasantry to cultivatecastor oil plants to be used as aviation fuel and lubricants.[35][36][37]
To gain cooperation from the Indonesian population and to prevent resistance to these measures, the Japanese put Sukarno as head of the3A Japanese propaganda movement or theTiga-A mass organization movement. In March 1943, the Japanese formed a new organization calledPoesat Tenaga Rakjat (POETERA/Center of People's Power) under Sukarno, Hatta,Ki Hadjar Dewantara, andKH Mas Mansjoer. These organizations aimed to galvanise popular support for recruitment ofromusha, to requisition of food products, and to promote pro-Japanese andanti-Western sentiments amongst Indonesians. Sukarno coined the termAmerika kita setrika, Inggris kita linggis ("Let's iron America, and bludgeon the British") to promote anti-Allied sentiments. In later years, Sukarno was lastingly ashamed of his role with theromusha. Additionally, food requisitioning by the Japanese caused widespread famine in Java, which killed more than one million people in 1944–1945. In his view, these were necessary sacrifices to be made to allow for the future independence of Indonesia.[33][34] He also was involved with the formation ofDefenders of the Homeland (Pembela Tanah Air; PETA) andHeiho (Indonesian volunteer army troops) via speeches broadcast on the Japanese radio and loudspeaker networks across Java and Sumatra. By mid-1945 these units numbered around two million and were preparing to defeat anyAllied forces sent to re-take Java.
1966ABC report examining Sukarno's alliance between imperial Japan and the Indonesian nationalist movement
In the meantime, Sukarno eventually divorced Inggit, who refused to accept her husband's wish for polygamy. She was provided with a house in Bandung and a pension for the rest of her life. In 1943, he married Fatmawati. They lived in a house in Jalan Pegangsaan Timur No. 56, confiscated from its previous Dutch owners and presented to Sukarno by the Japanese. This house would later be the venue of theProclamation of Indonesian Independence in 1945.
On 10 November 1943, Sukarno and Hatta were sent on a 17-day tour of Japan, where they were decorated by EmperorHirohito and wined and dined in the house of Prime MinisterHideki Tojo inTokyo. On 7 September 1944, with thewar going badly for the Japanese, Prime MinisterKuniaki Koiso promised independence for Indonesia, although no date was set.[38] This announcement was seen, according to the US official history, as immense vindication for Sukarno's apparent collaboration with the Japanese.[39] The USA at the time considered Sukarno one of the "foremost collaborationist leaders".[40]
Investigating Committee for Preparatory Work for Independence
On 29 April 1945, when thePhilippines were liberated by American forces, the Japanese allowed for the establishment of theInvestigating Committee for Preparatory Work for Independence (Badan Penyelidik Usaha-Usaha Persiapan Kemerdekaan, BPUPK), a quasi-legislature consisting of 67 representatives from most ethnic groups in Indonesia. Sukarno was appointed as head of the BPUPK and was tasked to lead discussions to prepare the basis of a future Indonesian state. To provide a common and acceptable platform to unite the various squabbling factions in the BPUPK, Sukarno formulated his ideological thinking developed over the previous twenty years into five principles. On 1 June 1945, he introduced a set of five principles, known aspancasila, during the joint session of the BPUPK held in the formerVolksraad Building (now called thePancasila Building).
Pancasila, as presented by Sukarno during the BPUPK speech, consisted of five principles which Sukarno saw as commonly shared by all Indonesians:[41]
Nationalism, whereby a united Indonesian state would stretch fromSabang toMerauke, encompassing all former Dutch East Indies
Internationalism, meaning Indonesia is to appreciate human rights and contribute to world peace, and should not fall into chauvinistic fascism such as displayed byNazis with their belief in the racial superiority ofAryans
Democracy, which Sukarno believed has always been in the blood of Indonesians through the practice of consensus-seeking (musyawarah untuk mufakat), an Indonesian-style democracy different from Western-style liberalism
Social justice, a form of populist socialism in economics with Marxist-style opposition to free capitalism. Social justice also intended to provide an equal share of the economy to all Indonesians, as opposed to the complete economic domination by the Dutch and Chinese during the colonial period
Belief in God, whereby all religions are treated equally and have religious freedom. Sukarno saw Indonesians as spiritual and religious people, but in essence tolerant towards different religious beliefs
On 22 June, the Islamic and nationalist elements of the BPUPK created a small committee of nine (Indonesian:Panitia Sembilan), which formulated Sukarno's ideas into the five-point Pancasila, in a document known as theJakarta Charter:[42]
Belief in one and only Almighty God with obligation for Muslims to adhere to Islamic law (Ketuhanan dengan kewajiban menjalankan syariat Islam bagi para pemeluknya)
Just and civilised humanity (Kemanusiaan yang adil dan beradab)
Unity of Indonesia (Persatuan Indonesia)
Democracy through inner wisdom and representative consensus-building (Kerakyatan yang dipimpin oleh hikmat kebijaksanaan dalam musyawarah perwakilan)
Social justice for all Indonesians (Keadilan bagi seluruh rakyat Indonesia)
Due to pressure from the Islamic element, the first principle mentioned the obligation for Muslims to practice Islamic law (sharia). However, the final Sila as contained in the1945 Constitution which was put into effect on 18 August 1945, excluded the reference to Islamic law for the sake of national unity. The elimination of sharia was done by Hatta based upon a request by Christian representativeAlexander Andries Maramis, and after consultation with moderate Islamic representatives Teuku Mohammad Hassan, Kasman Singodimedjo, and Ki Bagoes Hadikoesoemo.[43]
On 7 August 1945, the Japanese allowed the formation of a smallerPreparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence (Panitia Persiapan kemerdekaan Indonesia, PPKI), a 21-person committee tasked with creating the specific governmental structure of the future Indonesian state. On 9 August, the top leaders of PPKI (Sukarno, Hatta andKRT Radjiman Wediodiningrat), were summoned by the commander-in-chief of Japan's Southern Expeditionary Forces, Field MarshalHisaichi Terauchi, toDa Lat, 100 km fromSaigon. Terauchi gave Sukarno the freedom to proceed with preparation for Indonesian independence, free of Japanese interference. After much wining and dining, Sukarno's entourage was flown back to Jakarta on 14 August. Unbeknownst to the guests,atomic bombs had been dropped onHiroshima andNagasaki, and the Japanese were preparing forsurrender.
The following day, on 15 August, the Japanese declared their acceptance of thePotsdam Declaration terms and unconditionally surrendered to the Allies. On the afternoon of that day, Sukarno received this information from leaders of youth groups and members of PETAChairul Saleh,Soekarni, andWikana, who had been listening to Western radio broadcasts. They urged Sukarno to declare Indonesian independence immediately, while the Japanese were in confusion and before the arrival of Allied forces. Faced with this quick turn of events, Sukarno procrastinated. He feared a bloodbath due to hostile response from the Japanese to such a move and was concerned with prospects of future Allied retribution.
On the early morning of 16 August, the three youth leaders, impatient with Sukarno's indecision, kidnapped him from his house and brought him to a small house in Rengasdengklok,Karawang, owned by a Chinese family and occupied by PETA. There they gained Sukarno's commitment to declare independence the next day. That night, the youths drove Sukarno back to the house of Admiral Tadashi Maeda, the Japanese naval liaison officer in theMenteng area of Jakarta, who sympathised with Indonesian independence. There, he and his assistant Sajoeti Melik prepared the text of the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence.
Sukarno, accompanied by Mohammad Hatta (right), declaring the independence of Indonesia.
In the early morning of 17 August 1945, Sukarno returned to his house at Jalan Pegangsaan Timur No. 56, where Hatta joined him. Throughout the morning, impromptu leaflets printed by PETA and youth elements informed the population of the impending proclamation. Finally, at 10 am, Sukarno and Hatta stepped to the front porch, where Sukarno declared theindependence of the Republic of Indonesia in front of a crowd of 500 people. This most historic of buildings was later ordered to be demolished by Sukarno himself, without any apparent reason.[44]
On the following day, 18 August, the PPKI declared the basic governmental structure of the new Republic of Indonesia:
Electing Sukarno and Hatta as president and vice-president, respectively.
Putting into effect the 1945 Indonesianconstitution, which by this time excluded any reference to Islamic law.
Establishing aCentral Indonesian National Committee (Komite Nasional Indonesia Poesat, KNIP) to assist the president before an election of a parliament.
Sukarno's vision for the 1945 Indonesianconstitution comprised thePancasila (five principles). Sukarno's political philosophy was mainly a fusion of elements ofMarxism, nationalism and Islam. This is reflected in a proposition of his version of Pancasila he proposed to the BPUPK in a speech on 1 June 1945.[43]
Sukarno argued that all of the principles of the nation could be summarised in the phrasegotong royong.[45] The Indonesian parliament, founded on the basis of this original (and subsequently revised) constitution, proved all but ungovernable. This was due to irreconcilable differences between various social, political, religious and ethnic factions.[46]
Sukarno speaking on a rostrum at Ikada Square, attended by a million
In the days following the proclamation, the news of Indonesian independence was spread by radio, newspaper, leaflets, and word of mouth despite attempts by the Japanese soldiers to suppress the news. On 19 September, Sukarno addressed a crowd of one million people at the Ikada Field of Jakarta (now part ofMerdeka Square) to commemorate one month of independence, indicating the strong level of popular support for the new Republic, at least on Java and Sumatra. In these two islands, the Sukarno government quickly established governmental control while the remaining Japanese mostly retreated to their barracks awaiting the arrival of Allied forces. This period was marked by constant attacks by armed groups on anyone who was perceived to oppose Indonesian independence. The most serious cases were the Social Revolutions inAceh andNorth Sumatera, where large numbers of Acehnese and Malay aristocrats were killed, and the "Three Regions Affair" in the northwestern coast ofCentral Java. These bloody incidents continued until late 1945 to early 1946, and began to peter out as republican authorities began to exert and consolidate control.
Sukarno readying to deliver his fiery speech at Ikada Square.
Sukarno's government initially postponed the formation of a national army, for fear of antagonizing the Allied occupation forces and their doubt over whether they would have been able to form an adequate military apparatus to maintain control of seized territory. The members of variousmilitia groups formed during Japanese occupation such as the disbanded PETA andHeiho, at that time were encouraged to join the BKR -Badan Keamanan Rakjat (The People's Security Organization), itself a subordinate of the "War Victims Assistance Organization". It was only in October 1945 that the BKR was reformed into the TKR –Tentara Keamanan Rakjat (People's Security Army) in response to the increasing Allied and Dutch presence in Indonesia. The TKR armed themselves mostly by attacking Japanese troops and confiscating their weapons.
Due to the sudden transfer of Java and Sumatra from GeneralDouglas MacArthur's American-controlled Southwest Pacific Command toLord Louis Mountbatten's British-controlled Southeast Asian Command, the first Allied soldiers (1st Battalion of Seaforth Highlanders) did not arrive in Jakarta until late September 1945. British forces began to occupy major Indonesian cities in October 1945. The commander of the British 23rd Division, Lieutenant General SirPhilip Christison, set up command in the former governor-general's palace in Jakarta. Christison stated that he intended to free all Allied prisoners-of-war and to allow the return of Indonesia to its pre-war status, as a colony of the Netherlands. The republican government were willing to cooperate with the release and repatriation of Allied civilians and military POWs, setting up the Committee for the Repatriation of Japanese and Allied Prisoners of War and Internees (Panitia Oeroesan Pengangkoetan Djepang dan APWI, POPDA) for this purpose. POPDA, in cooperation with the British, repatriated more than 70,000 Japanese and Allied POWs and internees by the end of 1946. However, due to the relative weakness of the military of the Republic of Indonesia, Sukarno sought independence by gaining international recognition for his new country rather than engage in battle with British and Dutch military forces.
Sukarno was aware that his history as a Japanesecollaborator and his leadership in the Japanese-approvedPUTERA [id] during the occupation would make the Western countries distrustful of him. To help gain international recognition as well as to accommodate domestic demands for representation, Sukarno "allowed" the formation of a parliamentary system of government, whereby aprime minister controlled day-to-day affairs of the government, while Sukarno as president remained as a figurehead. The prime minister and his cabinet would be responsible to theCentral Indonesian National Committee instead of the president. On 14 November 1945, Sukarno appointedSutan Sjahrir, a European-educated politician who was never involved with the Japanese occupation authorities, as his first prime minister.
Sukarno speaking to Indonesian soldiers in Surabaya in the prelude to theBattle of Surabaya
In late 1945, Dutch administrators who led the Dutch East Indies government-in-exile and soldiers who had fought the Japanese began to return under the name of Netherlands Indies Civil Administration (NICA), with the protection of the British. They were led byHubertus Johannes van Mook, a colonial administrator who had evacuated toBrisbane, Australia. Dutch soldiers who had been POWs under the Japanese were released and rearmed. Shooting between these Dutch soldiers and police supporting the new republican government soon developed. This soon escalated to armed conflict between the newly constituted republican forces aided by a myriad of pro-independence fighters and the Dutch and British forces. On 10 November, a full-scalebattle broke out in Surabaya between the 49th Infantry Brigade of theBritish Indian Army and Indonesian nationalist militias. The British-Indian force were supported by air and naval forces. Some 300 Indian soldiers were killed (including their commander BrigadierAubertin Walter Sothern Mallaby), as were thousands of nationalist militiamen and other Indonesians. Shootouts broke out with alarming regularity in Jakarta, including an attempted assassination of Prime MinisterSjahrir by Dutch gunmen. To avoid this menace, Sukarno and the majority of his government left for the safety of Yogyakarta on 4 January 1946. There, the republican government received protection and full support from SultanHamengkubuwono IX. Yogyakarta would remain as the Republic's capital until the end of the war in 1949. Sjahrir remained in Jakarta to conduct negotiations with the British.[47]
The initial series of battles in late 1945 and early 1946 left the British in control of major port cities on Java and Sumatra. During the Japanese occupation, the Outer Islands (excluding Java and Sumatra) were occupied by the Japanese Navy (Kaigun), who did not allow for political mobilisation of the islanders. Consequently, there was little republican activity in these islands post-proclamation. Australian and Dutch forces were able to quickly take control of these islands without much fighting by the end of 1945 (excluding the resistance ofI Gusti Ngurah Rai in Bali, the insurgency inSouth Sulawesi, and fighting in Hulu Sungai area ofSouth Kalimantan). Meanwhile, the hinterland areas of Java and Sumatera remained under republican control.
Miles Lampson, 1st Baron Killearn and Ir. Soekarno attending theLinggadjati Agreement
Eager to pull its soldiers out of Indonesia, the British allowed for large-scale infusion of Dutch forces into the country throughout 1946. By November 1946, all British soldiers had been withdrawn from Indonesia. They were replaced with more than 150,000 Dutch soldiers. The British sent LordArchibald Clark Kerr, 1st Baron Inverchapel andMiles Lampson, 1st Baron Killearn to bring the Dutch and Indonesians to the negotiating table. The result of these negotiations was theLinggadjati Agreement signed in November 1946, where the Dutch acknowledgedde facto republican sovereignty over Java, Sumatera, and Madura. In exchange, the republicans were willing to discuss a future Commonwealth-likeUnited Kingdom of Netherlands and Indonesia.
Sukarno addressing the KNIP (parliament) inMalang, March 1947
Sukarno's decision to negotiate with the Dutch was met with strong opposition by various Indonesian factions.Tan Malaka, acommunist politician, organized these groups into a united front called thePersatoean Perdjoangan (PP). PP offered a "Minimum Program" which called for complete independence, nationalisation of all foreign properties, and rejection of all negotiations until all foreign troops are withdrawn. These programmes received widespread popular support, including from armed forces commander GeneralSudirman. On 4 July 1946, military units linked with PP kidnapped Prime Minister Sjahrir who was visiting Yogyakarta. Sjahrir was leading the negotiation with the Dutch. Sukarno, after successfully influencing Sudirman, managed to secure the release of Sjahrir and the arrest of Tan Malaka and other PP leaders. Disapproval of Linggadjati terms within the KNIP led Sukarno to issue a decree doubling KNIP membership by including many pro-agreement appointed members. As a consequence, KNIP ratified the Linggadjati Agreement in March 1947.[48]
On 21 July 1947, the Linggadjati Agreement was broken by the Dutch, who launchedOperatie Product, a massive military invasion into republican-held territories. Although the newly reconstitutedTNI was unable to offer significant military resistance, the blatant violation by the Dutch of an internationally brokered agreement outraged world opinion. International pressure forced the Dutch to halt their invasion force in August 1947. Sjahrir, who had been replaced as prime minister byAmir Sjarifuddin, flew toNew York City to appeal the Indonesian case in front of theUnited Nations. The UN Security Council issued a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and appointed a Good Offices Committee (GOC) to oversee the ceasefire. The GOC, based in Jakarta, consisted of delegations from Australia (led byRichard Kirby, chosen by Indonesia), Belgium (led byPaul van Zeeland, chosen by the Netherlands), and the United States (led byFrank Porter Graham, neutral).
The republic was now under firm Dutch military stranglehold, with the Dutch military occupyingWest Java, and the northern coast of Central Java andEast Java, along with the key productive areas of Sumatra. Additionally, the Dutch navy blockaded republican areas from supplies of vital food, medicine, and weapons. As a consequence, Prime Minister Amir Sjarifuddin had little choice but to sign theRenville Agreement on 17 January 1948, which acknowledged Dutch control over areas taken during Operatie Product, while the republicans pledged to withdraw all forces that remained on the other side of the ceasefire line ("Van Mook Line"). Meanwhile, the Dutch begin to organizepuppet states in the areas under their occupation, to counter republican influence utilising ethnic diversity of Indonesia.
The signing of the highly disadvantageous Renville Agreement caused even greater instability within the republican political structure. In Dutch-occupied West Java,Darul Islamguerrillas underSekarmadji Maridjan Kartosuwirjo maintained their anti-Dutch resistance and repealed any loyalty to the Republic; they caused a bloody insurgency in West Java and other areas in the first decades of independence. Prime Minister Sjarifuddin, who signed the agreement, was forced to resign in January 1948 and was replaced by Hatta. Hatta's cabinet's policy of rationalising the armed forces by demobilising large numbers of armed groups that proliferated the republican areas also caused severe disaffection. Leftist political elements, led by resurgent Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) underMusso took advantage of public disaffections by launching a rebellion inMadiun, East Java, on 18 September 1948. Bloody fighting continued during late-September until the end of October 1948, when the last communist bands were defeated, and Musso shot dead. The communists had overestimated their potential to oppose the strong appeal of Sukarno amongst the population.
Sukarno and Foreign MinisterAgus Salim in Dutch custody,Parapat 1949.Sukarno, seated in a jeep, defiantly laughs at a Dutch lieutenant during his arrest
On 19 December 1948, to take advantage of the republic's weak position following the communist rebellion, the Dutch launchedOperation Kraai, a second military invasion designed to crush the Republic once and for all. The invasion was initiated with an airborne assault on the republican capital Yogyakarta. Sukarno ordered the armed forces under Sudirman to launch a guerrilla campaign in the countryside, while he and other key leaders such as Hatta and Sjahrir allowed themselves to be taken prisoner by the Dutch. To ensure continuity of government, Sukarno sent a telegram to Sjarifuddin, providing him with the mandate to lead an Emergency Government of the Republic of Indonesia (PDRI), based on the unoccupied hinterlands of West Sumatra, a position he kept until Sukarno was released in June 1949. The Dutch sent Sukarno and other captured republican leaders to captivity in Parapat, in Dutch-occupied part of North Sumatra and later to the island ofBangka.
Sukarno's return to Yogyakarta in June 1949. The banner reads, "The one we've been waiting for, finally arrives."
The second Dutch invasion caused even more international outrage. The United States, impressed by Indonesia's ability to defeat the 1948 communist challenge without outside help,[clarification needed] threatened to cut offMarshall Aid funds to the Netherlands if military operations in Indonesia continued. TNI did not disintegrate and continued to wage guerrilla resistance against the Dutch, most notably the assault on Dutch-held Yogyakarta led by Lieutenant ColonelSuharto on 1 March 1949. Consequently, the Dutch were forced to sign theRoem–Van Roijen Agreement on 7 May 1949. According to this treaty, the Dutch released the republican leadership and returned the area surrounding Yogyakarta to republican control in June 1949. This was followed by theDutch-Indonesian Round Table Conference held inThe Hague which led to the complete transfer ofsovereignty by the QueenJuliana of the Netherlands to Indonesia, on 27 December 1949. On that day, Sukarno flew from Yogyakarta to Jakarta, making a triumphant speech at the steps of the governor-general's palace, immediately renamed theMerdeka Palace ("Independence Palace").
Sukarno's inauguration as president (17 December 1949, commentary in Dutch)
At this time, as part of a compromise with the Dutch, Indonesia adopted a newfederal constitution that made the country a federal state called the Republic ofUnited States of Indonesia (Indonesian:Republik Indonesia Serikat, RIS), consisting of the Republic of Indonesia whose borders were determined by the "Van Mook Line", along with the six states and nine autonomous territories created by the Dutch. During the first half of 1950, these states gradually dissolved themselves as the Dutch military that previously propped them up was withdrawn. In August 1950, with the last state, theState of East Indonesia dissolving itself, Sukarno declared a Unitary Republic of Indonesia based on the newly formulatedprovisional constitution of 1950.
Both the Federal Constitution of 1949 and the Provisional Constitution of 1950 were parliamentary in nature, where executive authority lay with the prime minister, and which, on paper, limited presidential power. However, even with his formally reduced role, he commanded a good deal ofmoral authority asFather of the Nation.
The first years of parliamentary democracy proved to be very unstable for Indonesia. Cabinets fell in rapid succession due to the sharp differences between the various political parties within thenewly-appointed parliament (Dewan Perwakilan Rakjat, DPR). There were severe disagreements concerning the future path of the Indonesian state, between nationalists who wanted asecular state (led byPNI, first established by Sukarno), Islamists who wanted anIslamic state (led by theMasyumi Party), and communists who wanted acommunist state (led by the PKI, which only in 1951 again became allowed to operate). On the economic front, there was severe dissatisfaction with continuing economic domination by large Dutch corporations and the ethnic Chinese.
The Darul Islam rebels underKartosuwirjo in West Java refused to acknowledge Sukarno's authority and declared an NII (Negara Islam Indonesia - Islamic State of Indonesia) in August 1949. Rebellions in support of Darul Islam also broke out in South Sulawesi in 1951, and in Aceh in 1953. Meanwhile, pro-federalist members of the disbandedKNIL launched failed rebellions in Bandung (APRA rebellion of 1950), inMakassar in 1950, and Ambon (Republic of South Maluku revolt of 1950).[49]
Additionally, the military was torn by hostilities between officers originating from the colonial-era KNIL, who wished for a small and elite professional military, and the overwhelming majority of soldiers who started their careers in the Japanese-formed PETA, who were afraid of being discharged and were more known for nationalist-zeal over professionalism.
On 17 October 1952, the leaders of the former-KNIL faction, Army Chief ColonelAbdul Haris Nasution and Armed Forces Chief-of-StaffTahi Bonar Simatupang mobilised their troops in a show of force. Protesting against attempts by the DPR to interfere in military business on behalf of the former PETA faction of the military, Nasution and Simatupang had their troops surround the Merdeka Palace and point their tank turrets at the building. Their demand for Sukarno was that the current DPR be dismissed. For this cause, Nasution and Simatupang also mobilised civilian protesters. Sukarno came out of the palace and convinced both the soldiers and the civilians to go home. Nasution and Simatupang were later dismissed. Nasution, however, would be re-appointed as Army Chief after reconciling with Sukarno in 1955.
The1955 elections produced a newparliament and aconstitutional assembly. The election results showed equal support for the antagonistic powers of the PNI, Masyumi,Nahdlatul Ulama, and PKI parties. With no faction controlling a clear majority, domestic political instability continued unabated. Talks in the Constitutional Assembly to write a new constitution met with deadlock over the issue of whether to include Islamic law.
Sukarno came to resent his figurehead position and the increasing disorder of the country's political life. Claiming that Western-styleparliamentary democracy was unsuitable for Indonesia, he called for a system of "guided democracy," which he claimed was based on indigenous principles of governance. Sukarno argued that at the village level, important questions were decided by lengthydeliberation designed to achieve aconsensus, under the guidance of village elders. He believed it should be the model for the entire nation, with the president taking the role assumed by village elders. He proposed a government based not only onpolitical parties but on "functional groups" composed of the nation's essential elements, which would together form a National Council, through which a national consensus could express itself under presidential guidance.
Vice President Hatta was strongly opposed to Sukarno's guided democracy concept. Citing this and other irreconcilable differences, Hatta resigned from his position in December 1956. His retirement sent a shockwave across Indonesia, particularly among the non-Javanese, who viewed Hatta as their representative in a Javanese-dominated government.
From December 1956 to January 1957, regional military commanders in the provinces of North, Central, and South Sumatra took over local government control. They declared a series of military councils which were to run their respective areas and refused to accept orders from Jakarta. A similar regional military movement took control of North Sulawesi in March 1957. They demanded the elimination of communist influence in government, an equal share in government revenues, and reinstatement of the former Sukarno-Hatta duumvirate.
Faced with this serious challenge to the unity of the republic, Sukarno declaredmartial law (Staat van Oorlog en Beleg) on 14 March 1957. He appointed a non-partisan prime ministerDjuanda Kartawidjaja, while the military was in the hands of his loyal General Nasution. Nasution increasingly shared Sukarno's views on the negative impact of western democracy on Indonesia, and he saw a more significant role for the military in political life.
As a reconciliatory move, Sukarno invited the leaders of the regional councils to Jakarta on 10–14 September 1957, to attend a National Conference (Musjawarah Nasional), which failed to bring a solution to the crisis. On 30 November 1957, anassassination attempt was made on Sukarno by way of a grenade attack while he was visiting a school function in Cikini,Central Jakarta. Six children were killed, but Sukarno did not suffer any serious wounds. The perpetrators were members of the Darul Islam group, under the order of its leader Sekarmadji Maridjan Kartosuwirjo.
By December 1957, Sukarno began to take serious steps to enforce his authority over the country. On that month, he nationalised 246 Dutch companies which had been dominating the Indonesian economy, most notably theNetherlands Trading Society,Royal Dutch Shell subsidiaryBataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij,Escomptobank, and the "big five" Dutch trading corporations (NV Borneo Sumatra Maatschappij / Borsumij,NV Internationale Crediet- en Handelsvereeneging "Rotterdam" / Internatio,NV Jacobson van den Berg & Co,NV Lindeteves-Stokvis, andNV Geo Wehry & Co), and expelled 40,000Dutch citizens remaining in Indonesia while confiscating their properties, purportedly due to the failure by the Dutch government to continue negotiations on the fate ofNetherlands New Guinea as was promised in the 1949 Round Table Conference.[50] Sukarno's policy of economic nationalism was strengthened by the issuance of Presidential Directive No. 10 of 1959, which banned commercial activities by foreign nationals in rural areas. This rule targeted ethnic Chinese, who dominated both the rural and urban retail economy, although at this time few of them had Indonesian citizenship. This policy resulted in massive relocation of the rural ethnic-Chinese population to urban areas, and approximately 100,000 chose to return to China.
To face the dissident regional commanders, Sukarno and Army Chief Nasution decided to take drastic steps following the failure ofMusjawarah Nasional. By utilizing regional officers that remained loyal to Jakarta, Nasution organized a series of "regional coups" which ousted the dissident commanders in North Sumatra (Colonel Maludin Simbolon) and South Sumatra (Colonel Barlian) by December 1957. This returned government control over key cities ofMedan andPalembang.
In February 1958, the remaining dissident commanders in Central Sumatra (Colonel Ahmad Hussein) and North Sulawesi (Colonel Ventje Sumual) formed thePRRI-Permesta Movement aimed at overthrowing the Jakarta government. They were joined by many civilian politicians from the Masyumi Party, such as Sjafruddin Prawiranegara, who were opposed to the growing influence of communists. Due to their anti-communist rhetoric, the rebels received money, weapons, and manpower from theCIA in a campaign known as Archipelago. This support ended whenAllen Lawrence Pope, an American pilot, was shot down after a bombing raid on government-heldAmbon in April 1958. In April 1958, the central government responded by launching airborne and seaborne military invasions on Padang andManado, the rebel capitals. By the end of 1958, the rebels had been militarily defeated, and the last remaining rebel guerrilla bands surrendered in August 1961.[51][52]
Sukarno (on top of the steps) reading his decree on 5 July 1959Sukarno's official portrait in the 1960s, complete with military-style decorations
The impressive military victories over the PRRI-Permesta rebels and the popular nationalisation of Dutch companies left Sukarno in a firm position. On 5 July 1959, Sukarno reinstated the 1945 constitution bypresidential decree. It established a presidential system which he believed would make it easier to implement the principles of guided democracy. He called the systemManifesto Politik orManipol, but it was actuallygovernment by decree. Sukarno envisioned an Indonesian-style socialist society, adherent to the principle of USDEK:
The structure of Sukarno's guided democracy in 1962
After establishing guided democracy, Sukarno along withMaladi metDevi Dja, an Indonesian-born dancer who changed her citizenship to the United States, in mid-1959, and convinced her to return as an Indonesian citizen, which Dja refused.[53] In March 1960, Sukarno disbanded parliament and replaced it with a new parliament where half the members were appointed by the president (Dewan Perwakilan Rakjat - Gotong Rojong / DPR-GR). In September 1960, he established aProvisional People's Consultative Assembly (Madjelis Permusjawaratan Rakjat Sementara/MPRS) as the highest legislative authority according to the 1945 constitution. MPRS members consisted of members of DPR-GR and members of "functional groups" appointed by the president.
President Sukarno signing a letter to transfer power fromDjuanda to himself
With the backing of the military, Sukarno disbanded the Islamic party Masyumi and Sutan Sjahrir's partyPSI, accusing them of involvement with PRRI-Permesta affair. The military arrested and imprisoned many of Sukarno's political opponents, from socialist Sjahrir to Islamic politiciansMohammad Natsir andHamka. Using martial law powers, the government closed down newspapers that were critical of Sukarno's policies.[54][55][56]
During this period, there were several assassination attempts on Sukarno's life. On 9 March 1960,Daniel Maukar, an Indonesian airforce lieutenant who sympathised with the Permesta rebellion, strafed the Merdeka Palace andBogor Palace with hisMiG-17 fighter jet, attempting to kill the president; he was not injured. In May 1962, Darul Islam agents shot at the president duringEid al-Adha prayers on the grounds of the palace. Sukarno again escaped injury.
On the security front, the military started a series of effective campaigns which ended the long-festering Darul Islam rebellion in West Java (1962), Aceh (1962), and South Sulawesi (1965). Kartosuwirjo, the leader of Darul Islam, was captured and executed in September 1962.
To counterbalance the power of the military, Sukarno started to rely on the support of the PKI. In 1960, he declared his government to be based onNasakom, a union of the three ideological strands present in Indonesian society:nasionalisme (nationalism),agama (religions), andkomunisme (communism). Accordingly, Sukarno started admitting more communists into his government, while developing a strong relationship with the PKI chairmanDipa Nusantara Aidit.
In order to increase Indonesia's prestige, Sukarno supported and won the bid for the1962 Asian Games held in Jakarta. Many sporting facilities such as the Senayan sports complex (including the 100,000-seatBung Karno Stadium) were built to accommodate the games. There was political tension when the Indonesians refused the entry of delegations fromIsrael andTaiwan. After theInternational Olympic Committee imposed sanctions on Indonesia due to this exclusion policy, Sukarno retaliated by organizing a "non-imperialist" competitor event to theOlympic Games, called theGames of New Emerging Forces (GANEFO). GANEFO was successfully held in Jakarta in November 1963 and was attended by 2,700 athletes from 51 countries.
As part of his prestige-building program, Sukarno ordered the construction of large monumental buildings such asNational Monument (Monumen Nasional),Istiqlal Mosque, Jakarta,CONEFO Building (now theParliament Building),Hotel Indonesia, and the Sarinah shopping centre to transform Jakarta from a former colonial backwater to a modern city. The modern Jakarta boulevards of Jalan Thamrin, Jalan Sudirman, and Jalan Gatot Subroto were planned and constructed under Sukarno.
On the international front, Sukarno organized theBandung Conference in 1955, with the goal of uniting the developing Asian and African countries into theNon-Aligned Movement to counter both the United States and the Soviet Union.[57]
Sukarno addressing theUS Congress in 1956. Sitting behind him were Vice President and President of the SenateRichard Nixon and Speaker of the HouseSam Rayburn.
As Sukarno's domestic authority was secured, he began to pay more attention to the world stage. He embarked on a series of aggressive and assertive policies based onanti-imperialism to increase Indonesia's international prestige. These anti-imperialist and anti-Western policies, often employingbrinkmanship with other nations, were also designed to unite the diverse and fractious Indonesian people. In this, he was aided by his foreign ministerSubandrio.
After his first visit toBeijing in 1956, Sukarno began to strengthen his ties to the People's Republic of China and the communist bloc in general. He also began to accept increasing amounts ofSoviet-bloc military aid. By the early 1960s, the Soviet bloc provided more aid to Indonesia than to any other non-communist country, while Soviet military aid to Indonesia was equalled only by its aid to Cuba. This substantial influx of communist aid prompted an increase in military aid from theDwight D. Eisenhower andJohn F. Kennedy administrations, which worried about a leftward drift should Sukarno rely too much on Soviet-bloc aid.[58]
Sukarno was feted during his visit to the United States in 1956, where he addressed a joint session of theUnited States Congress. To date, it is the only time any Indonesian president has addressed a joint session of the US Congress. Soon after his first visit to America, Sukarno visited the Soviet Union, where he received an even more lavish welcome. Soviet premierNikita Khrushchev paid a return visit to Jakarta and Bali in 1960, where he awarded Sukarno with theLenin Peace Prize. To make amends for CIA involvement in the PRRI-Permesta rebellion, Kennedy invited Sukarno toWashington, D.C., and provided Indonesia with billions of dollars in civilian and military aid.[58]
President Tito and Sukarno at the exit ofPostojna Cave, 6 April 1960
To follow up on the successful 1955 Bandung Conference, Sukarno attempted to forge a new alliance called the "New Emerging Forces" (NEFO), as a counter to the Western superpowers dubbed the "Old Established Forces" (OLDEFO), whom he accused of spreading "Neo-Colonialism and Imperialism" (NEKOLIM). In 1961, Sukarno established another political alliance, called the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM, in Indonesia known as Gerakan Non-Blok, GNB) at the1st Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement inBelgrade together with Egypt's PresidentGamal Abdel Nasser, India's Prime MinisterPandit Jawaharlal Nehru,Yugoslavia's PresidentJosip Broz Tito, and Ghana's PresidentKwame Nkrumah, in an action called The Initiative of Five (Sukarno, Nkrumah, Nasser, Tito, and Nehru). NAM was intended to provide political unity and influence for nations who wished to maintain independence from the American and Soviet superpower blocs, which were engaged inCold War competition. Sukarno is still fondly remembered for his role in promoting the influence of newly independent countries. His name is used as a street name inCairo, Egypt andRabat, Morocco, and as a major square inPeshawar, Pakistan. In 1956, theUniversity of Belgrade awarded him anhonorary doctorate.
During the Cold War, Sukarno’s neutral stance got him in trouble with both the Soviet KGB and American CIA, who tried blackmailing him with sex tapes. Around 1960, during Moscow visits, the KGB allegedly filmed him with women, maybe flight attendants, to push his policies their way.[59][60] Sukarno laughed it off and even asked for copies of the tapes.[59] In an effort to damage his reputation, the CIA produced a fake pornographic film featuring a Sukarno look-alike and Russian women, which they claimed had been created by the KGB.[61][62] Both plans flopped; Indonesians saw Sukarno as a tough guy, and he kept his non-aligned path till his 1967 ouster.[63]
In 1960 Sukarno began an aggressive foreign policy to secure Indonesian territorial claims. In August of that year, he broke off diplomatic relations with the Netherlands over the continuing failure to commence talks on the future of Netherlands New Guinea, as was agreed at the Dutch-Indonesian Round Table Conference of 1949. In April 1961, the Dutch announced the formation of aNieuw Guinea Raad, intending to create an independentPapuan state. Sukarno declared a state of military confrontation in hisTri Komando Rakjat (TRIKORA) speech in Yogyakarta, on 19 December 1961. He then directed military incursions into the half-island, which he referred to asWest Irian. By the end of 1962, 3,000 Indonesian soldiers were present throughout West Irian/West Papua.
On 28 August 1961,Elizabeth II invited Sukarno for a state visit toLondon which was scheduled in May 1962.[64] But on 19 September, Juliana of the Netherlands, who heard the news, felt unhappy due to the breakdown of Indonesia's diplomatic relations with the Netherlands after the West Irian dispute.[64] Upon hearing the news, she stated that negotiations with Indonesia regarding West Irian would not take place and did not allow Elizabeth, who was still her distant niece, to invite Sukarno, which resulted in a worsening of Indonesia's diplomatic relations with theUnited Kingdom.[64] On 21 April 1962, Sukarno canceled the visit due to a Dutch attack on the Indonesian Navy fleet in the Arafuru Sea.[64]
A naval battle erupted in January 1962 when four Indonesiantorpedo boats were intercepted by Dutch ships and planes off the coast of Vlakke Hoek. One Indonesian boat was sunk, killing the Naval Deputy Chief-of-StaffCommodoreJos Sudarso. Meanwhile, the Kennedy Administration worried of a continuing Indonesian shift towards communism should the Dutch hold on to West Irian/West Papua. In February 1962U.S. Attorney GeneralRobert F. Kennedy travelled to the Netherlands and informed the government that the United States would not support the Netherlands in an armed conflict with Indonesia. With Soviet armaments and advisors, Sukarno planned a large-scale air- and sea-borne invasion of the Dutch military headquarters ofBiak for August 1962, calledOperasi Djajawidjaja. It was to be led by Major-General Suharto. Before these plans could be realised, Indonesia and the Netherlands signed theNew York Agreement in August 1962. The two countries agreed to implement the Bunker Plan (formulated by American diplomatEllsworth Bunker), whereby the Dutch agreed to hand over West Irian/West Papua toUNTEA on 1 October 1962. UNTEA transferred the territory to Indonesian authority in May 1963.
After securing control over West Irian/West Papua, Sukarno then opposed the British-supported establishment of theFederation of Malaysia in 1963, claiming that it was a neo-colonial plot by the British to undermine Indonesia. Despite Sukarno's political overtures, which found some support when leftist political elements in British Borneo territoriesSarawak andBrunei opposed the Federation plan and aligned themselves with Sukarno, Malaysia was established in September 1963. This was followed by theIndonesia–Malaysia confrontation (Konfrontasi), proclaimed by Sukarno in hisDwi Komando Rakjat (DWIKORA) speech in Jakarta on 3 May 1964. Sukarno's proclaimed objective was not, as some alleged, to annexSabah and Sarawak into Indonesia, but to establish a "State of North Kalimantan" under the control of theNorth Kalimantan Communist Party. From 1964 until early 1966, a limited number of Indonesian soldiers, civilians, and Malaysian communist guerrillas were sent into North Borneo and the Malay Peninsula. These forces fought against British and Commonwealth soldiers deployed to protect the nascent state of Malaysia. Indonesian agents also exploded several bombs inSingapore. Domestically, Sukarno fomented anti-British sentiment, and the British Embassy was burned down. In 1964, all British companies operating in the country, including Indonesian operations of theChartered Bank andUnilever, were nationalised. The confrontation came to a climax during August 1964, when Sukarno authorised landings of Indonesian troops atPontian andLabis on the Malaysian mainland, and all-out war seemed inevitable as tensions escalated. However, the situation calmed by mid-September at the culmination of theSunda Straits Crisis, and after the disastrousBattle of Plaman Mapu in April 1965, Indonesian raids into Sarawak became fewer and weaker.
In 1964, Sukarno commenced an anti-American campaign, which was motivated by his shift towards the communist bloc and less friendly relations with theLyndon Johnson administration. American interests and businesses in Indonesia were denounced by government officials and attacked by PKI-led mobs. American movies were banned, American books andBeatles albums were burned, and the Indonesian bandKoes Plus was jailed for playing American-stylerock and roll music. As a result, USA aid to Indonesia was halted, to which Sukarno made his famous remark "Go to hell with your aid". Sukarno withdrew Indonesia from the United Nations on 7 January 1965 when, with U.S. backing, Malaysia took a seat on theUN Security Council.[65]
As the NAM countries were splitting into different factions, and as fewer countries were willing to support his anti-Western foreign policies, Sukarno began to abandon his non-alignment rhetoric. Sukarno formed a new alliance with China,North Korea,North Vietnam, andCambodia which he called the "Beijing-Pyongyang-Hanoi-Phnom Penh-Jakarta Axis". After withdrawing Indonesia from the "imperialist-dominated" United Nations in January 1965, Sukarno sought to establish a competitor organisation to the UN called theConference of the New Emerging Forces (CONEFO) with support from the People's Republic of China,[66] which at that time wasnot yet a member of United Nations. With the government heavily indebted to the Soviet Union, Indonesia became increasingly dependent on China for support.[67] Sukarno spoke increasingly of a Beijing-Jakarta axis,[67] which would be the core of a new anti-imperialist world organization, the CONEFO.[67]
Domestically, Sukarno continued to consolidate his control. On 18 May 1963, the MPRSelected Sukarnopresident for life. His ideological writings on Manipol-USDEK andNasakom became mandatory subjects in schools and universities, while his speeches were to be memorised and discussed by all students. All newspapers, the only radio station (RRI, government-run), and the only television station (TVRI, also government-run) were made into "tools of the revolution" and functioned to spread Sukarno's messages. Sukarno developed apersonality cult, with the capital of newly acquiredWest Irian renamed toSukarnapura and the highest peak in the country was renamed from Carstensz Pyramid toPuntjak Sukarno (Sukarno Peak).
Despite these appearances of unchallenged control, Sukarno's guided democracy stood on fragile grounds due to the inherent conflict between its two underlying support pillars, the military and the communists. The military, nationalists, and the Islamic groups were shocked by the rapid growth of the communist party under Sukarno's protection. They feared an imminent establishment of a communist state in Indonesia. By 1965, the PKI had three million members and were particularly strong in Central Java and Bali. The PKI had become the strongest party in Indonesia.
The military and nationalists were growing wary of Sukarno's close alliance with communist China, which they thought compromised Indonesia's sovereignty. Elements of the military disagreed with Sukarno's policy of confrontation with Malaysia, which in their view only benefited communists, and sent several officers (including future armed forces ChiefLeonardus Benjamin Moerdani) to spread secret peace-feelers to the Malaysian government. The Islamic clerics, who were mostly landowners, felt threatened by PKI's land confiscation actions (aksi sepihak) in the countryside and by the communist campaign against the "seven village devils", a term used for landlords or better-off farmers (similar to the anti-kulak campaign inStalinist era). Both groups harboured deep disdain for PKI in particular due to memories of the bloody1948 communist rebellion.
Sukarno speaks at the celebration of the 45th anniversary of thePKI at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium (GBK), April 1965.[68]
As the mediator of the three groups under the NASAKOM system, Sukarno displayed greater sympathies to the communists. The PKI had been very careful to support all of Sukarno's policies. Meanwhile, Sukarno saw the PKI as the best-organized and ideologically solid party in Indonesia, and a useful conduit to gain more military and financial aid fromCommunist Bloc countries. Sukarno also sympathised with the communists' revolutionary ideals, which were similar to his own.
To weaken the influence of the military, Sukarno rescinded martial law (which gave wide-ranging powers to the military) in 1963. In September 1962, he "promoted" the powerful General Nasution to the less-influential position of armed forces chief, while the influential position of army chief was given to Sukarno's loyalistAhmad Yani. Meanwhile, the position of air force chief was given toOmar Dhani, who was an open communist sympathiser. In May 1964, Sukarno banned the activities ofManifesto Kebudajaan (Manikebu), an association of artists and writers which included prominent Indonesian writers such as Hans Bague Jassin and Wiratmo Soekito, who were also dismissed from their jobs. Manikebu was considered a rival by the communist writer's associationLembaga Kebudajaan Rakjat (Lekra), led byPramoedya Ananta Toer. In December 1964, Sukarno disbanded theBadan Pendukung Soekarnoisme (BPS, "Association for Promoting Sukarnoism"), an organization that sought to oppose communism by invoking Sukarno's own Pancasila formulation. In January 1965, Sukarno, under pressure from the PKI, banned theMurba Party. Murba was a pro-Soviet Union party whose ideology was antagonistic to the PKI's pro-Chinese People's Republic view of Marxism.[69]
1966ABC report discussing Sukarno's political context forKonfrontasi
Tensions between the military and communists increased in April 1965, when PKI chairmanAidit called for the formation of a "fifth armed force" consisting of armed peasants and labourers. Sukarno approved this idea and publicly called for the immediate formation of such a force on 17 May 1965. However, Army Chief Ahmad Yani and Defense Minister Nasution procrastinated in implementing this idea, as this was tantamount to allowing the PKI to establish its own armed forces. Soon afterwards, on 29 May, the "Gilchrist Letter" appeared. The letter was supposedly written by the British ambassadorAndrew Gilchrist to theForeign Office in London, mentioning a joint American and British attempt on subversion in Indonesia with the help of "local army friends." This letter, produced by Subandrio, aroused Sukarno's fear of a military plot to overthrow him, a fear which he repeatedly mentioned during the next few months. TheCzechoslovakian agentLadislav Bittman, who defected in 1968, claimed that his agency (StB) forged the letter on request from PKI via the Soviet Union to smear anti-communist generals. On his independence day speech of 17 August 1965, Sukarno declared his intention to commit Indonesia to an anti-imperialist alliance with China and other communist regimes and warned the army not to interfere. He also stated his support for the establishment of a "fifth force" of armed peasants and labourers.[70]
Dirgantara Monument, one of Sukarno's "Lighthouse Program" projects, which allocated millions for large-scale national projects. Pictured here in 1971
While Sukarno devoted his energy to domestic and international politics, theeconomy of Indonesia was neglected and deteriorated rapidly. The government printed money to finance its military expenditures, resulting inhyperinflation exceeding 600% per annum in 1964–1965. Smuggling and the collapse of export plantation sectors deprived the government of much-needed foreign exchange income. Consequently, the government was unable to service massive foreign debts it had accumulated from both Western and Communist bloc countries. Most of the government budget was spent on the military, resulting in deterioration of infrastructures such as roads, railways, ports, and other public facilities. Deteriorating transportation infrastructure and poor harvests caused food shortages in many places. The small industrial sector languished and only produced at 20% capacity due to lack of investment.
Sukarno himself was contemptuous ofmacroeconomics and was unable and unwilling to provide practical solutions to the poor economic condition of the country. Instead, he produced more ideological conceptions such asTrisakti: political sovereignty, economic self-sufficiency, and cultural independence. He advocated Indonesians "standing on their own feet" (Berdikari) and achieving economic self-sufficiency, free from foreign influence.[71]
Towards the end of his rule, Sukarno's lack of interest in economics created a distance between himself and the Indonesian people, who were suffering economically.[72]
On the dawn of 1 October 1965, six of Indonesia's most senior army generals werekidnapped and murdered by a movement calling themselves the "30 September Movement" (G30S). Among those killed was Yani, while Nasution narrowly escaped, but the movement kidnappedFirst LieutenantPierre Tendean, his adjutant, presumably mistaking him for Nasution in the darkness. The G30S consisted of members of thePresidential Guards,Brawidjaja Division, andDiponegoro Division, under the command of a Lieutenant-ColonelUntung bin Sjamsuri. The movement took control of the RRI radio station and Merdeka Square. They broadcast a statement declaring the kidnappings were meant to protect Sukarno from a coup attempt by CIA-influenced generals. Later, it broadcast news of the disbandment of Sukarno's cabinet, to be replaced by a "Revolutionary Council." In Central Java, soldiers associated with the G30S also seized control of Yogyakarta andSolo on 1–2 October, killing twocolonels in the process.
Major General Suharto, commander of the military's strategic reserve command, took control of the army the following morning.[73] Suharto ordered troops to take over the RRI radio station and Merdeka Square itself. On the afternoon of that day, Suharto issued an ultimatum to theHalim Air Force Base, where the G30S had based themselves and where Sukarno (the reasons for his presence are unclear and were subject of claim and counter-claim), Air Marshal Omar Dhani, and PKI Chairman Aidit had gathered. By the following day, it was clear that the incompetently organized and poorly coordinated coup had failed. Sukarno took up residence in the Bogor Palace, while Dhani fled to East Java and Aidit to Central Java.[74] By 2 October, Suharto's soldiers occupied Halim Air Force Base, after a short gunfight. Sukarno's obedience to Suharto's 1 October ultimatum to leave Halim is seen as changing all power relationships.[75] Sukarno's fragile balance of power between the military, political Islam, communists and nationalists that underlay his "Guided Democracy" was now collapsing.[74] On 3 October, the corpses of the kidnapped generals were discovered near the Halim Air Force Base, and on 5 October they were buried in a public ceremony led by Suharto.
In early October 1965, a military propaganda campaign began to sweep the country, successfully convincing both Indonesian and international audiences that it was a communist coup, and that the murders were cowardly atrocities against Indonesian heroes since those who were shot were veteran military officers.[76] PKI's denials of involvement had little effect.[77] Following the discovery and public burial of the generals' corpses on 5 October, the army along with Islamic organizations Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama led a campaign to purge Indonesian society, government and armed forces of the communist party and other leftist organizations. Leading PKI members were immediately arrested, some summarily executed. Aidit was captured and killed in November 1965.[76]The purge spread across the country with the worst massacres in Java and Bali.[77] In some areas, the army organized civilian groups and local militias, in other areas communal vigilante action preceded the army.[78] The most widely accepted estimates are that at least half a million were killed.[79] It is thought that as many as 1.5 million were imprisoned at one stage or another.[80]
As a result of the purge, one of Sukarno's three pillars of support, the PKI, had been effectively eliminated by the other two, the military and political Islam. The killings and the failure of his tenuous "revolution" distressed Sukarno, and he tried unsuccessfully to protect the PKI by referring to the generals' killings aseen rimpeltje in de oceaan ("ripple in the sea of the revolution"). He tried to maintain his influence by appealing in a January 1966 broadcast for the country to follow him. Subandrio sought to create a Sukarnoist column (Barisan Sukarno), which was undermined by Suharto's pledge of loyalty to Sukarno and the concurrent instruction for all those loyal to Sukarno to announce their support for the army.[81]
On 1 October 1965, Sukarno appointed GeneralPranoto Reksosamudro as army chief to replace the deceased Yani, but he was forced to give this position to Suharto two weeks later. In February 1966, Sukarno reshuffled his cabinet, sacking Nasution as defense minister and abolishing his position of armed forces chief of staff, but Nasution refused to step down. Beginning in January 1966, university students started demonstrating against Sukarno, demanding the disbandment of PKI and for the government to control spiralling inflation. In February 1966, student demonstrators in front of Merdeka Palace were shot at by Presidential Guards, killing the student Arief Rachman Hakim, who was quickly turned into a martyr by student demonstrators.
A meeting of Sukarno's full cabinet was held at the Merdeka Palace on 11 March 1966. As students were demonstrating against the administration, unidentified troops began to assemble outside. Sukarno, Subandrio and another minister immediately left the meeting and went to the Bogor Palace by helicopter. Three pro-Suharto generals (Basuki Rahmat,Amir Machmud, andMohammad Jusuf) were dispatched to the Bogor Palace, and they met with Sukarno, who signed for them a Presidential Order known asSupersemar. Through the order, Sukarno assigned Suharto to "take all measures considered necessary to guarantee security, calm and stability of the government and the revolution and to guarantee the personal safety and authority [of Sukarno]". The authorship of the document, and whether Sukarno was forced to sign, perhaps even at gunpoint, is a point of historical debate. The effect of the order, however, was the transfer of most presidential authority to Suharto. After obtaining the Presidential Order, Suharto had the PKI declared illegal, and the party was abolished. He also arrested many high-ranking officials that were loyal to Sukarno on the charge of being PKI members and/or sympathizers, further reducing Sukarno's political power and influence.
April 1967ABC report of the political tensions at end of the Sukarno era
On 22 June 1966, Sukarno made hisNawaksara speech in front of the MPRS, now purged of communist and pro-Sukarno elements, in an unsuccessful last-ditch attempt to defend himself and his guided democracy system. In August 1966, over Sukarno's objections, Indonesia ended its confrontation with Malaysia and rejoined the United Nations. Following another unsuccessful accountability speech (Nawaksara Addendum) on 10 January 1967, Sukarno relinquished his executive powers to Suharto on 20 February 1967 while remaining nominally as titular president. He was finally stripped of his president for life title by the MPRS on 12 March 1967 in a session chaired by his former ally, Nasution. On the same day, the MPR named Suharto acting president.[82] Sukarno was put underhouse arrest in Wisma Yaso (now theSatriamandala Museum), where his health deteriorated due to denial of adequate medical care.[83] He died ofkidney failure inJakarta Army Hospital on 21 June 1970, 15 days after his 69th birthday. He wasburied inBlitar, East Java.
On 9 September 2024, theMPR officially revoked MPR Resolution No. XXXIII/MPRS/1967 that was used as an instrument to revoke Sukarno from presidency and barred him from politics.[84] Since there was no trial to prove that Sukarno is responsible for the 30th of September incident, the MPR revoked the resolution and resolved to restore his reputation posthumously.[85][86]
Sukarno with Fatmawati and five of their children. Clockwise from center: Sukarno, Sukmawati, Fatmawati, Guruh, Megawati, Guntur, Rachmawati
Sukarno was of Javanese andBalinese descent. He marriedSiti Oetari in 1921, and divorced her in 1923 to marryInggit Garnasih, whom he divorced in about 1943 to marry Fatmawati.[87] In 1953, Sukarno married Hartini, a 30-year-old widow fromSalatiga, whom he met during a reception. Fatmawati was outraged by this fourth marriage and left Sukarno and their children, although they never officially divorced. In 1958, Sukarno marriedMaharani Wisma Susana Siregar, an independence veteran fromLiverpool who was 23 years his junior, and divorced in 1962.[88] he was introduced to the then 19-year-old Japanese hostess Naoko Nemoto, whom he married in 1962 and renamedRatna Dewi Sukarno.[89] Sukarno also had five other spouses:Sakiko Kanase (1958–1959),Kartini Manoppo (1959–1968),Haryati (1963–1966),Yurike Sanger (1964–1968), andHeldy Djafar (1966–1969).[90][91] Sukarno was known for his relationships with several women such asGusti Nurul,Baby Huwae,Nurbani Yusuf, andAmelia De La Rama.[92][93][94] In 1964, he married Rama in Jakarta and remained with her until his death in 1970.[94] The marriage was kept as a secret until Rama mentioned it during an interview in 1979.[94]
Before his marriage to Fatmawati, Sukarno was married and had a daughter,Rukmini, who later became an opera singer in Italy.[95][96]Megawati Sukarnoputri, who served as the fifth president of Indonesia, is his daughter by his wife Fatmawati. Her younger brotherGuruh Sukarnoputra (born 1953) has inherited Sukarno's artistic bent and is achoreographer andsongwriter, who made a movieUntukmu, Indonesiaku (For You, My Indonesia) about Indonesian culture. He is also a member of the Indonesian People's Representative Council for Megawati'sIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle. His siblings Guntur Sukarnoputra,Rachmawati Sukarnoputri, andSukmawati Sukarnoputri have all been active in politics. Sukarno had a daughter named Kartika by Dewi Sukarno.[97] In 2006, Kartika Sukarno married Frits Seegers, the Netherlands-born chief executive officer of theBarclays Global Retail and Commercial Bank.[98] Other children include Taufan and Bayu by his wife Hartini, a son named Totok Suryawan Sukarnoputra (born 1967, in Germany), by his wife Kartini Manoppo, and a daughter, Siti Aisyah Margaret Rose, by his wife Maharani Wisma Susana Siregar.[88]
100,000rupiah banknote featuring Sukarno andMohammad Hatta, issued in 2022Special 75,000rupiah banknote featuring the same figures, issued in 2020 to celebrate Indonesia's 75 years of independence
Kuantar Ke Gerbang, an Indonesian novel by Ramadhan KH, tells the story of the romantic relationship between Sukarno and Inggit Garnasih, his second wife.
Sukarno: An Autobiography byCindy Adams (Bobbs-Merrill, 1965): "Autobiography" written by the American writer with the cooperation of Sukarno. Translated intoIndonesian by Abdul Bar Salim asBung Karno: Penjambung Lidah Rakjat Indonesia (Gunung Agung, 1966).
My Friend the Dictator by Cindy Adams (Bobbs-Merrill, 1967): A contemporary account of the writing of the autobiography.
Nationalism, Islam and Marxism, On his political concept "Nasakom"; collection of articles, 1926. Translated by Karel H. Warouw and Peter D. Weldon (Modern Indonesia Project, Ithaca, New York, 1970).
Indonesia vs Fasisme, Analysis on Indonesian nationalism versus fascism; collection of articles, 1941 (Pen. Media Pressindo, Yogyakarta, 2000).
A song titledUntuk Paduka Jang Mulia Presiden Sukarno (To His Excellency President Sukarno) was written in early 60s by Soetedjo and popularised byLilis Suryani, a famous Indonesian female soloist. The lyrics are full of expression of praise and gratitude to the then president for life.
Indonesian actorFrans Tumbuan portrayed Sukarno in the 1997 movieBlanco, The Colour of Love (compacted from its original TV serial version,Api Cinta Antonio Blanco) about Spanish painterAntonio Blanco who settled and resided inBali, Indonesia.
Indonesian actor Soultan Saladin portrayed Sukarno in the 2005 movieGie, directed byRiri Riza, about the life of student activistSoe Hok Gie.
Indonesian actorTio Pakusadewo is set to portray Sukarno in a planned movie9 Reasons, telling the stories of nine women in the life of the founding father: Oetari (portrayed by (Acha Septriasa); Inggit Garnasih (Happy Salma); Fatmawati (Revalina Sayuthi Temat); Hartini (Lola Amaria); Haryati (Ajeng Anjani); Kartini Manoppo (Wulan Guritno); Ratna Sari Dewi (Mariana Renata); Yurike Sanger (Isyana Sarasvati); Heldy Djafar (Pevita Pearce); Wisma Susana Siregar (Chelsea Islan); Sakiko Kanase (Haruka Nagakawa) and Amelia De La Rama (Raisa Adriana). Tio Pakusadewo also portrayed Sukarno's erstwhile colleague and eventual successor,Suharto, in another 2012 biopicHabibie dan Ainun.
Indonesian actorBaim Wong portrayed Sukarno in the 2013 movieKetika Bung di Ende, focusing on the time and life of Sukarno during his exile inEnde,Flores Island.
Indonesian actor and TV personality Dave Mahendra portrayed Sukarno in the 2015 movieGuru Bangsa: Tjokroaminoto, a biopic ofOemar Said Tjokroaminoto, an Indonesian nationalist who is often credited as mentor to many prominent figures in the nation's fight to independence, including Sukarno himself.
^On 11 March 1966, Sukarno, confronted by GeneralsBasuki Rahmat,Mohammad Jusuf, andAmir Machmud, who were sent bySuharto,signed an order "delegating toGeneral Suharto the authority 'to take all necessary steps to guarantee security and calm and the stability of the running of thegovernment and the course of the revolution,' and also to preserve the personal safety of thepresident." This effectively ended Sukarno's presidential powers. However, he remained the nominal president. Later in the month, a new cabinet was announced.[1]
^Bishku, Michael B. (1992). "Sukarno, Charismatic Leadership and Islam in Indonesia".Journal of Third World Studies.9 (2):100–117.ISSN8755-3449.JSTOR45197254.
^Hassan, M. Zein (1980).Diplomasi Revolusi Indonesia Di Luar Negeri: Perjoangan (sic) Pemuda/Mahasiswa di Timur Tengah (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Penerbit Bulan Bintang.
^Jo, Hendi (20 March 2018)."Mengapa Ahmad Sukarno?".Historia - Majalah Sejarah Populer Pertama di Indonesia (in Indonesian). Retrieved23 October 2021.
^Sukarno; Adams, Cindy (1965).Sukarno, An Autobiography. The Bobbs-Merrill Company Inc. p. 21.
^Satō, Shigeru (1994).War, Nationalism, and Peasants: Java Under the Japanese Occupation, 1942-1945. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe Incorporated. pp. 159–160.ISBN978-1-317-45235-5.
^Emmerson, Donald K., ed. (1999).Indonesia Beyond Suharto: Polity, Economy, Society, Transition. Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe. pp. 3–38., section: Robert Cribb, 'Nation: Making Indonesia'
^MacMillan, Richard (2006).The British Occupation of Indonesia 1945–1946. New York: Routledge.ISBN0-415-35551-6.
^Poeze, Harry (2009).Tan Malaka, Gerakan Kiri, dan Revolusi Indonesia. Jakarta: KITLV.[page needed]
^abBlum, William (2003).Killing Hope: U.S. Military and CIA Interventions Since World War II. Monroe, ME: Common Courage Press. pp. 99–102.ISBN978-1-56751-252-6.
^"CIA SEX BLUNDER"(PDF). Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved14 September 2025.
^Nutter, John Jacob (2000).The CIA's Black Ops: Covert Action, Foreign Policy, and Democracy. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books. p. 147.ISBN978-1-57392-742-0.
^Lashmar, Paul; Oliver, James (6 December 1998)."How we destroyed Sukarno".The Independent. Retrieved14 September 2025.
^Matthew Jones, "US relations with Indonesia, the Kennedy-Johnson transition, and the Vietnam connection, 1963–1965".Diplomatic History 26.2 (2002): 249–281.online
^Ricklefs (1991), p. 288; Friend (2003), p. 113; Vickers (2005), p. 159;Cribb, Robert (2002). "Unresolved Problems in the Indonesian Killings of 1965–1966".Asian Survey.42 (4):550–563.doi:10.1525/as.2002.42.4.550.S2CID145646994.
Jones, Matthew. "US relations with Indonesia, the Kennedy-Johnson transition, and the Vietnam connection, 1963–1965".Diplomatic History 26.2 (2002): 249–281.online
Brands, H.W. "The limits of Manipulation: How the United States didn't topple Koesno Sosrodihardjo".Journal of American History 76.3 (1989): 785–808.online
Hughes, John (2002),The End of Sukarno – A Coup that Misfired: A Purge that Ran Wild, Archipelago Press,ISBN981-4068-65-9
Oei Tjoe Tat, 1995, Memoar Oei Tjoe Tat: Pembantu Presiden Soekarno (The memoir of Oei Tjoe Tat, assistant to President Sukarno), Hasta Mitra,ISBN979-8659-03-1 (banned in Indonesia)
Lambert J. Giebels, 1999,Soekarno. Nederlandsch onderdaan. Biografie 1901–1950. Biography part 1, Bert Bakker Amsterdam,ISBN90-351-2114-7
Lambert J. Giebels, 2001,Soekarno. President, 1950–1970, Biography part 2, Bert Bakker Amsterdam,ISBN90-351-2294-1 geb.,ISBN90-351-2325-5 pbk.
Lambert J. Giebels, 2005,De stille genocide: de fatale gebeurtenissen rond de val van de Indonesische president Soekarno,ISBN90-351-2871-0
Legge, John David (2003).Sukarno: A Political Biography. Singapore: Archipelago Press. pp. 101–102.ISBN978-981-4068-64-2.
Ricklefs, M.C. (1991).A History of Modern Indonesia since c. 1300. MacMillan.ISBN0-333-57690-X.
Panitia Nasional Penyelenggara Peringatan HUT Kemerdekaan RI ke-XXX (National Committee on 30th Indonesian Independence Anniversary), 1979,30 Tahun Indonesia Merdeka (I: 1945–1949) (30 Years of Independent Indonesia (Part I:1945–1949)), Tira Pustaka, Jakarta
.jpg)
%2c_p7_(3x4_close_cropped).jpg)
.svg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
