Ahmed Sukarno

Ahmed Sukarno

A charismatic leader, Ahmed Sukarno left an indelible imprint on the history and politics of Indonesia. Born on June 6, 1901, he was the most important leader of the nationalist movement and the first president of the Indonesian Republic.

After graduating from Bandung Technische Hoogeschool in 1926, Sukarno joined the nationalist movement and was instrumental in establishing the Perserikatan Nasional Indonesia (PNI, Indonesian Nationalist Union) on July 4, 1927. The PNI voiced the indigenous sentiment against colonial rule. He was imprisoned and exiled, returning to Jakarta after the Japanese occupation in 1942. Sukarno had a flair for flamboyant oratory.

Sukarno enumerated the Pancasila, or five budbahasa postulates, on June 1, 1945, as guidelines for governing Indonesia: nationalism, internationalism, consent, social justice, and belief in God. Unable to suppress the independence movement, the Netherlands signed the Hague Agreement of December 27, 1949, ending its colonial rule. Sukarno and Muhammad Hatta became president and prime minister, respectively.

The new constitution provided for a parliamentary form of government in which president Sukarno was a mere figurehead, with his rivals dominating the political scene. There was political instability and the collapse of five successive cabinets in six years. There were revolts against the central authority in West Java, Kalimantan, south Sulawesi, and Sumatra.


Sukarno criticized the ineffective government and began to assert his authority gradually from 1955, instituting a "guided democracy" in 1957 that replaced democratic with authoritarian rule. On July 5, 1959, Sukarno reinstituted the 1945 constitution, assuming executive authority, ruling by decree. In July 1963 Sukarno was made president for life by a compliant assembly.

From the early 1960s Sukarno directed his attention to grandiose plans of projecting Indonesia into the international arena and himself as leader of the nonaligned bloc.

Examples of his image building were his hosting of the 29-nation Afro-Asian conference at Bandung in 1955. He also hosted the Asian Games and the games of the Newly Emerging Forces (NEF). In 1957 he nationalized Dutch businesses. In 1963 he annexed the western half of Papua New Guinea, or Dutch New Guinea.

Sukarno broke off relations with the newly formed Malaysia in 1963 and attempted to destabilize it by guerrilla attacks. Indonesia withdrew from the United Nations after the admission of Malaysia.

Sukarno then consulted communist nations with Moscow responding with foreign aid. Domestically, inflation, corruption, deficit spending, and victimization of the Chinese business community led to economic ruin. Inflation reached a staggering proportion, and the economy was on the brink of collapse.

Sukarno and his first lady Rahmawati

The attempted coup in September 1965 sealed Sukarno’s fate. General Haji Mohammad Suharto took leadership in crushing the coup on September 30. As a result, the political authority of Sukarno was fatally weakened by Suharto, who became the president in March 1967. Sukarno, stripped of presidential powers, was banned from any political activity and remained under house arrest in Jakarta until his death on June 21, 1970.

There was a revival of the popularity of Sukarno in 1980s, because many people had become disenchanted with the dictatorial military regime of Suharto. They honored his struggle against colonialism. Megawati Sukarnoputri, his eldest daughter, became the symbol of the pro-democracy movement that opposed Suharto, and she was elected president of Indonesia from 2001 to 2004.

Haji Mohammad Suharto

The second president of Indonesia after Sukarno, General Haji Mohammad Suharto was born June 8, 1921, in Kemusuk Argamulja, central Java. His military career began with the Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945.

After Sukarno’s declaration of independence in 1945, Suharto fought against the Dutch and later joined the Indonesian National Army. In the violent upheaval of 1965, he was instrumental in crushing the Partai Komunis Indonesia (PKI, or Indonesian Communist Party) coup and rose rapidly after this event.

As Sukarno’s political authority weakened, Suharto began to strengthen his position. By an executive order in 1966, Sukarno was forced to grant emergency powers to Suharto. Under Suharto Orde Baru (New Order) was established, emphasizing economic development and social harmony.

Relations with Western countries improved and confrontation with Malaysia ended, but relations with China deteriorated. Indonesia became a founding member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The military became powerful and extended its hold over economic management, which led to large-scale corruption.


Suharto also restricted political party activity. By March 1967 he was the acting president and he was elected president on March 21, 1968. He continued to hold the office until 1998, being reelected unopposed five times. His Golkar Party also won every election during this time.

Suharto’s regime suppressed secessionist movements and added Western New Guinea, a former Dutch colony under United Nations (UN) temporary executive authority after a stage-managed election in 1969. However, he had to deal with the Organisasi Papua Merdeka (OPM, or Free Papua Movement) and its guerrilla campaign against the government of Indonesia.

Suharto also faced problems from the province of Aceh after the formation of the Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM, or Free Aceh Movement), which demanded independence in 1976. He suppressed the rebellion by force and martial law, but discontent remained.

East Timor was a former Portuguese colony. Suharto ordered an invasion and incorporated it into Indonesia in 1976. A guerrilla war against Indonesian occupation continued amid reports of brutality by the army.

In 1998 talks between Portugal, Indonesia, and the United Nations resulted in a plebiscite for the East Timorese people. However, the Indonesian army and a pro-Indonesian militia unleashed a reign of terror in the region that killed more than 1,300 people and sent 300,000 people fleeing into West Timor.

Suharto faced challenges on the economic front also, as his profligate spending and corruption forced the economy to falter. Beginning in the 1990s, opposition to his authoritarian regime gained intensity.

The financial crisis of Asia in 1997 resulted in the plummeting value of the Indonesia currency, which lost 80 percent of its value in 1998. Riots escalated after May 1998, causing him to resign on May 21, 1998. He was replaced by Vice President Jusuf Habibie.

Suharto was placed under house arrest in 2000. In 2003 the Human Rights Commission of Indonesia began to examine atrocities committed under his regime. By then Suharto was in poor health, often hospitalized, and therefore spared prosecution. Indonesia returned to democratic government after his fall. Suharto died in Jakarta on January 27, 2008, from multiple organ failure.

Indonesian Communist Party (PKI)

The left movement in Indonesia began within the Sarekat Islam (Islamic Association), established in 1911. Henk Sneevliet established the Indische Sociaal Democratische Vereenigin (ISDV, Indies Social Democratic Association) in 1914 and worked within the Sarekat Islam.

PKI in Batavia (now Jakarta) - 1925

After the Russian Revolution of 1917 the ISDV increased its membership, and in May 1920 it changed its name to Partai Kommunist Indonesia (PKI, Communist Party of Indonesia), which became the first communist party in Asia.

It was expelled by the Sarekat Islam. The PKI organized strikes, and Dutch authorities, alarmed, expelled leaders like Sneevliet and Tan Malaka. The policy of repression by the government made the PKI popular, and it organized large-scale strikes in 1926.

In November the Republic of Indonesia was proclaimed. After proclamation of the Republic of Indonesia on August 17, 1945, by Ahmed Sukarno (1901–70) the PKI believed it to be Japanese sponsored and fascist. The republic successfully crushed two communist rebellions in 1946 and 1948.

There was a change in PKI’s direction after 1950 under the leadership of Dipa Nusantara Aidit. It had an aktivitas of nationalist commitment and supported Sukarno’s anticolonial policy. In the first general elections of 1955 the PKI was aligned with the Perserikatan Nasional Indonesia (PNI, Indonesian Nationalist Union), founded by Sukarno in June 1927.

The PKI received 16.4 percent of the votes, and in the newly elected parliament it had 39 seats. With maneuvering and a dedicated party cadre, the PKI had become a political force to be reckoned with in the country.

Dipa Nusantara Aidit

n July 1957 the PKI made advances in municipal elections. The PKI had become vocal about the Dutch control of West New Guinea (Irian Jaya/Papua). In the wake of a campaign to annex it, the members of PKI as well as PNI seized control of Dutch industries in December 1957.

The PKI’s voice against the dominance of foreign capital in Indonesia gradually led to the nationalization of major industries. Religious parties like Islamist Masyumi were in favor of declaring the PKI illegal. The party had found Sukarno as an ally and supported his Guided Democracy.

The PNI, PKI, and Nahdatul Ulema were among the major political parties that were allowed to function. After the abortive coup of February 1958, martial law was imposed by Sukarno, and the PKI supported it. By 1960 the PKI could influence Sukarno on internal and foreign policy of the country.

The situation in Indonesia during the 1960s was ripe for a communist insurrection, and the PKI exploited the situation to its maximum potential. The crop failure in central Java in February 1964 resulted in a starving population of 1 million.

Both Sukarno and the PKI launched the Crush Malaysia campaign. PKI cadres crossed over the border and took part in guerrilla warfare in Sarawak and north Borneo. The United States terminated military aid in September 1963.

The PKI had begun a aktivitas of arming the people. It had become the third-largest communist party in the world, with a membership of 3.5 million. It had the direct support of 20 million people through its varied organizations. On the night of September 30, 1965, six top army generals were rounded up, taken to the Halim Air Force Base, and brutally killed.

The identity of the perpetrators of the crime was not known, but blame was placed on the PKI. The Gerakan on September 30 resulted in violent retribution against the PKI. There was a slaughter of a half-million Communists, including the Chinese. The PKI was outlawed in March 1966.

General Haji Mohamed Suharto (1921– ), who had taken leadership in crushing the coup, became the acting president in March 1967. Sukarno remained under house arrest until his death on June 21, 1970. Suharto established the Kopkamtib (Operational Command for the Restoration of Security and Order) to scuttle the opposition, muzzle the press, and prevent the reemergence of the PKI.

There was otokritik (selfcriticism) by exiled PKI members in Beijing. In 1999 President Abdurrahman Wahid asked the exiled PKI leaders to come back to open a dialogue, but the anjuran did not find favor with fundamentalist Islamic groups.