The Economist, 6 Nov 1965, p.594, 'Rings on a tree trunk', from a special correspondent in Jakarta: the army-inspired anti-communist campaign has gained its own momentum, with raids on PKI offices, arrests, 26 Antara correspondents detained, Aidit in hiding, Sukarno declaring Central Java in a 'state of war'. Wall graf
Indonesia: slap for Omar Dhani
Algemeen Handelsblad column (1965-11-18) on post-coup Indonesia: Suharto slaps Omar Dhani, rumours of poisoning, false communist accusations, and an RPKAD anecdote. Reports that Mrs. Subandrio, chair of Kowani, announced Gerwani had been expelled from the federation; Berita Yudha mocked her, and Mrs. Nasution reportedl
Hamilton Spectator, 19 Nov 1965, p.6: Arthur Dommen (Los Angeles Times) on the 'Indonesian mystery' of the 30 September movement in central Java: Pemuda Rakjat raids on police posts at Boyolali and Klaten (22 Oct), army claims about 1,000 raiders killed, arms from China and guerrilla plans. The wartime-quality OCR name
And shame (Solo, November 1965)
Limburgsch Dagblad, 20 November 1965, p. 5: correspondent's column from Solo. Paratroopers daily parade 'enemies of the people', yesterday three Gerwani members, described as involved in the massacres 'in the most dissolute manner', forced to lie face down on hot asphalt before a passive crowd. It also describes ex-may
Indonesia: golden time
Algemeen Handelsblad column 'Golden time' (1965-11-29) on post-coup Indonesia: loyalty advertisements in newspapers, frozen bank accounts for suspected persons, price rises and Conefo stamps, a quarrel in a Malang court. A final item, 'Gerwani, kill her', describes villagers near Tasikmalaya chasing 'Gerwani' with kniv
Army plans to kill P.K.I. for ever (The Scotsman, 8 December 1965)
The Scotsman, 8 Dec 1965, Dennis Bloodworth, 'Army plans to kill PKI for ever': Suharto and Nasution press to destroy the PKI while Sukarno refuses to ban it; the article analyses the PKI's miscalculations. It repeats the slander that six generals were mutilated by 'doe-eyed girls' of the PKI's 'Gerwani' women's moveme
Straits Times, 8 Dec 1965: almost overlords yesterday, almost outlaws today (Dennis Bloodworth)
Straits Times, 8 Dec 1965, by Dennis Bloodworth (lead only). Analysis of how Indonesian Communists, implicated in the 'ruthless but abortive' 1 October coup, miscalculated their moment, strength and strategy, and the army's savage determination. Matched on Gerwani and PKI; lead does not name Gerwani.
Almost overlords yesterday, almost outlaws today: what happened to the PKI? (Bloodworth, Straits Times, 1965)
The Straits Times, 8 December 1965, p. 12, analysis by Dennis Bloodworth on why the PKI failed. In passing it repeats the Lubang Buaya slander as fact: 'six leading generals were done to death, horribly mutilated by doe-eye girls of the PKI's Gerwani women's movement'. It then covers Sukarno's weakness, Nasution's esca
Evening Post (Wellington), 10 Dec 1965, commentary on the Indonesian Communists after the 30 September coup. It repeats the Lubang Buaya atrocity claim that six generals were 'horribly mutilated by doe-eyed girls' of the PKI's 'Gerwani' women's movement and thrown into a well, with Communist youth dancing at Halim; als
Sukarno the Key to Any Revolution in Indonesia (Evening Post, 10 December 1965), headline clipping
Headline-only clipping 'Sukarno the Key to Any Revolution in Indonesia' from the Evening Post of 10 Dec 1965; no further text. The full article repeats the Gerwani Lubang Buaya claim.
Sukarno the Key to Any Revolution in Indonesia (Evening Post, 10 December 1965), standfirst clipping
Standfirst clipping of the Evening Post article of 10 Dec 1965: the Indonesian Communists, 'almost overlords yesterday, almost outlaws today', miscalculated their moment, strength and strategy and the determination of the military and Muslims to wipe them out. Gerwani is not named in this fragment.
Sukarno the Key to Any Revolution in Indonesia (Evening Post, 10 December 1965), clipping on Gerwani claim
Clipping from the Evening Post of 10 Dec 1965: says Sukarno could not back the coup because of its brutality, and that six generals were 'horribly mutilated by doe-eyed girls' of the PKI's 'Gerwani' women's movement and thrown into a well, while Communist youth danced at Halim. This is the Lubang Buaya sexual-atrocity
Sukarno the Key to Any Revolution in Indonesia (Evening Post, 10 December 1965), closing clipping
Closing clipping of the Evening Post article of 10 Dec 1965: Nasution's escape over his garden wall and the murder of his five-year-old daughter; alleged PKI plans for arson and famine; the party's 'patriotic' image destroyed; Sukarno forced to appoint Suharto army chief while the Army mops up Communists in Central and
Vilification of Sukarno after loss of 'president for life' title
Commentary by C.H. Schaap in De Tijd (10 Sep 1966) on the campaign to vilify Sukarno after he lost the "president for life" title, including his private life and wives (Fatmawati, Hartini, Ratna Sari Dewi, Haryati). It says this is "a slap in the face for the Indonesian women's movement, which strives for monogamy"; Ge
Executions in Indonesia: Untung and others, with Gerwani blamed
De Tijd commentary by C.H. Schaap (29 Sep 1967) on the executions of Untung and others for the 1965 coup. It says the generals were killed at Halim by "volunteers" trained by Maj. Sujono, "among them members of the communist women's organisation Gerwani", and notes the trials were broadcast and published.
Women's studies column, with note on Indonesian women's movement and polygamy (Edmonton Journal, 1972)
Edmonton Journal, 16 Aug 1972, p.20: a column on Women's Studies reviewing the essay collection Woman in Sexist Society. A short passage on non-Western women's status notes that Indonesian women's active economic role, and that the Indonesian women's movement's major goals were abolition of polygamy and divorce by repu
Skewed conclusions from Sukarno's letters: De Telegraaf commentary on Gerwani's role
De Telegraaf commentary by Frank de Jong (26 Sep 1973) attacking NRC conclusions drawn from Sukarno letters published by Ratna Sari Dewi. It asserts as "established beyond dispute" that thousands of Pemuda Rakyat and Gerwani members took part in the abduction and slow torture of the six generals, repeating the slander.
East is East and West is West (Kousbroek)
Rudy Kousbroek's column 'Oost is Oost en West is West' in NRC Handelsblad (19 Feb 1988): an anecdote of a Minahasan surveyor in Maluku shocked by his atheism, with remarks on Indonesian attitudes to feminism and childlessness. Ends as the surveyor asks whether they are communists. No mention of Gerwani; background colo
Folio: Channelling a national narcissism (Blokker column on Indies books)
Jan Blokker column in De Volkskrant (12 Aug 1995) reviewing Dutch books on the Indies and the colonial past. Mrs. S.K. Trimurti appears only as an interviewee quoted in H.C. Beynon's "Verboden voor honden en inlanders", on living with Inggit after Sukarno's 1933 arrest. Gerwani is not mentioned.