1 May 1963: Irian Barat Free!
Api Kartini (May 1963) editorial 'Irian Barat Free!' on the UNTEA handover of West Irian to Indonesia on 1 May 1963. Celebrates mothers' sacrifices for Trikora and tells the Netherlands that normal relations require accepting the new situation, dropping colonial 'privileges' and unreasonable claims for compensation, in
Dutch woman sole defender
ANP report in Algemeen Dagblad (1966-02-15) on Dutch-born lawyer Trees Sunito-Heyligers, the only Indonesian jurist willing to defend PKI/SOBSI leader Njono before the special military tribunal. Her husband Sunito was jailed after the coup and she was dismissed from the state bank. No Gerwani mention; context for the 1
Indonesia: protest against persecution of the women's movement Gerwani
De Waarheid, 13 May 1966, p. 1: report that the NVB wrote to President Sukarno in shock and indignation at the terror against Gerwani and other democratic organisations, recalling the role they played in the Indonesian revolution and nation-building, and demanding the release of all political prisoners and lifting of t
Protest against persecution of Gerwani (full front page, 13 May 1966)
Full De Waarheid front page, 13 May 1966, mostly Dutch domestic and international news (cabinet Cals wage policy, Soviet trade delegation, US-China air incident). Only one box is relevant: the NVB's letter to Sukarno protesting terror against Gerwani and other democratic organisations and demanding release of political
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
Angkatan Bersendjata, 11 October 1967
Angkatan Bersendjata, 11 Oktober 1967. Editorial welcoming foreign press support quotes Otto Kuyk's Dutch book 'Sukarno Tabeh': on the night of G30S women seized the bound generals and tortured them in the filthiest and cruelest ways.
Dutch-born jurist arrested in Djakarta
Short Algemeen Handelsblad item (1968-01-05): Jakarta police arrested Dutch-born jurist Trees Soenito-Heyligers (52) on suspicion of membership of the banned HSI. She had defended K. Njono, sentenced to death for the 1965 coup; her husband Soenito, parliament secretary and member of the left-wing Urec movement, was arr
Dutch woman lawyer arrested in Jakarta on suspicion of HSI membership
De Nieuwe Limburger, 5 Jan 1968 (Reuters): Jakarta police arrest Dutch lawyer Mrs Mr Trees Soenito-Heyligers, from Zwolle, on suspicion of membership of the banned communist scholars' association HSI. Two years earlier she had defended trade union leader Njono, sentenced to death for the 1965 coup.
Dutch woman arrested in Jakarta (Soenito-Heyligers)
Short De Telegraaf wire (5 Jan 1968, Reuter): Dutch-born lawyer Trees Soenito-Heyligers (52) was arrested in Jakarta on suspicion of membership of the banned communist scholars' association; she had defended trade-union leader Njono, sentenced to death for the 1965 coup. Gerwani is not mentioned.
Dutch-born jurist arrested in Indonesia
Limburgsch Dagblad, 5 January 1968, p. 1: Reuters/ANP report that Jakarta police arrested Dutch-born lawyer Trees Soenito-Heyligers (52, from Zwolle) as a suspected member of the banned scholars' association HSI; she had defended trade-union leader Njono, sentenced to death. Her husband Soenito, parliament secretary an
Arrest of Mrs Soenito in Jakarta
Tubantia (5 Jan 1968): Jakarta police arrest Zwolle-born lawyer Trees Soenito-Heyligers on suspicion of membership of the banned Himpunan Sarjana Indonesia; she had defended SOBSI leader Njono, sentenced to death. Biographical detail on her and her husband Soenito, arrested after the coup. No Gerwani content.
Dutch jurist arrested
Nederlands Dagblad, 6 January 1968, p. 1: brief report that Jakarta police arrested Dutch-born lawyer Trees Soenito-Heyligers on suspicion of membership in the banned scholars' association HSI; she had defended SOBSI leader Njono, who was sentenced to death for the 1965 coup. A second item on Cyprus is unrelated. No Ge
Indonesia and the Wertheim Committee: Nijmegen congress and Dutch aid to Suharto
Long De Tijd opinion piece by Arie Kuiper (24 Apr 1969) on the Nijmegen student congress and the Wertheim Indonesia Committee's call to halt Dutch aid to Suharto's regime. It acknowledges hundreds of thousands killed and many political prisoners but blames Muslim hatred and defends Suharto; it repeats that generals wer
Dutch Senate written questions 1969-1970, no. 70: Political prisoners in Indonesia
Dutch Senate written questions (19 May 1970) by Senator Van Hulst on Indonesian political prisoners, with PM De Jong's answer of 10 June 1970. Context on Dutch parliamentary attention to post-1965 detainees.
Aidit (CPN Poster, c. 1970)
Dutch Communist Party (CPN) poster, c. 1970, with a portrait of D.N. Aidit captioned as August Revolution fighter, PKI leader and 'killed by the generals' regime'. Left martyr imagery in the Netherlands.
Dutch Women's Movement protests Suharto's visit: letter to ministers
De Waarheid, 5 Aug 1970, p. 1: full text of the NVB executive's letter to Dutch ministers protesting President Suharto's planned state visit. It accuses his regime of causing hundreds of thousands of deaths, rejecting clemency, and holding at least 125,000 prisoners and exiles, among them many members of the 'million-m
Sandwich-board action in The Hague against Suharto visit: 'Freedom for the women of Gerwani'
De Waarheid, 18 Aug 1970, p. 1: report that a dozen women demonstrated with sandwich boards in The Hague against Suharto's planned visit, carrying signs 'Freedom for the women of Gerwani' and 'Suharto unwanted', distributing the NVB letter and later protesting at the Indonesian embassy.
Rotterdam women demonstrated against Suharto's visit
De Waarheid, 19 Aug 1970, p. 1: report that Rotterdam women demonstrated on the Lijnbaan and at the Beurs against General Suharto's state visit, with signs demanding release of political prisoners in Indonesia and especially members of Gerwani, handing out the NVB letter. Port workers also telegraphed Minister Luns.
The revolution passes Indonesia by: interview with Ernst Utrecht
Second half of a De Volkskrant interview (29 Aug 1970) with Prof. Ernst Utrecht on his book on Indonesia ahead of Suharto's Dutch visit. Utrecht says the Jakarta branches of Gerwani and Pemuda Rakyat "wanted to take part and did take part" in the 1965 coup, that the PKI leadership said these were independent organisati
The Hague women demonstrated against Suharto's visit
De Waarheid, 4 Sep 1970, p. 1: report that NVB members in The Hague carried sandwich boards for several days against Suharto's visit ('The women of Gerwani must be free', 'Not a cent for the generals'), handing out thousands of pamphlets until police took the women in at 3:30 pm on 3 September, amid public applause.
Women's movement needed: Truus Divendal on Gerwani and Indonesia
De Waarheid, 7 Sep 1971, p. 4: report on the NVB's speech by Truus Divendal arguing a women's movement is still needed. She reports fundraising for the South Vietnamese NLF and addresses Indonesia: Gerwani, which earlier played a large role in eliminating illiteracy, now has thousands of members imprisoned; the NVB dem
Resolution closing the NVB congress of 1971: lift the ban on Gerwani
De Waarheid, 1 Nov 1971, p. 6: report on the close of the NVB's 25th-anniversary congress, which adopted a resolution on education, equal rights and government policy and urged support for the Vietnamese NLF. The congress also demanded lifting of the ban on Gerwani and freedom for Angela Davis; G. van der Laan succeede
Women - life imprisonment (Joop Morrien on the trial of Gerwani and PKI women)
De Waarheid, 25 Apr 1975, article by Joop Morrien on nearly ten years of Suharto's dictatorship. It reports the military tribunal trial of Gerwani and PKI women Sulami, Sudjinah, Sri Ambar Rukmiati and Suharti Harsono, who went underground after 1965 and were arrested in late 1966; life is demanded for Sulami and 20 ye
Women's movement magazine condemns Indonesian trial: NVB demands freedom for Gerwani women
De Waarheid, 21 Jun 1975, p. 5: report that the NVB monthly 'Vrouwen' urges protest against the heavy sentences passed in late April on four Gerwani members. It recalls the 1965 coup, bloodbath and camps, ten years of deteriorating living conditions and foreign aid through the IGGI (up to 880 million dollars a year). T
Stop support for the Suharto regime
De Waarheid, 21 Jun 1975, p. 5: boxed text 'Stop support for the Suharto regime' from the NVB monthly 'Vrouwen': the IGGI group (US, Japan, West Germany, Netherlands) gives up to 880 million dollars yearly to the regime; its April meeting was postponed amid confusion over Indochina; Suharto fears liberation victories.
Ford Questioned on CIA Activity in Indonesia (FBIS, 16 Oct 1975)
FBIS item: Radio Peace and Progress (Moscow, in Indonesian, 16 Oct 1975) commentary on Ratna Sari Dewi's letter asking President Ford to explain the CIA's role in 1965. She cites hundreds of thousands killed and tens of thousands jailed without trial. A Dutch editor is quoted saying PKI, SOBSI, Gerwani and Pemuda Rakya
Tortures (article by Annie van Ommeren in 'Vrouwen')
De Waarheid, 18 Oct 1975, p. 5: closing part of a review of the NVB monthly 'Vrouwen'. Annie van Ommeren's article stresses women's role against the regime, with Gerwani members prominent, names prominent women held and tortured with burning cigarettes and electric shocks in Plantungan, Bukit Duri and Bulu prisons, and
Dutch Parliament Written Question 111 (1975): Government Position on Indonesian Political Prisoners
Dutch Second Chamber written question no. 111 (Aug 1975) by Fred van der Spek and Foreign Minister Van der Stoel's reply, on an Indonesian embassy claim that the Dutch government fully understood Indonesia's political prisoner problem. Context on Dutch diplomacy over post-1965 detainees.
Constitution (Amnesty press conference on Indonesian prisoners)
Nederlands Dagblad, 6 October 1976, p. 5: partly missing report on an Amnesty International press conference in the Netherlands about Indonesian political prisoners. It states that the women in the women's camps are for the most part members of the militant Gerwani, discusses church relief for prisoners' families, and
Dutch Parliament Written Question 605 (1978): Release of Political Prisoners in Indonesia
Dutch Second Chamber written question no. 605 (Jan 1978) by Henk Waltmans on the Dutch ambassador attending a political prisoner release in Medan, with Minister Van der Klaauw's answer citing Indonesia's end-1979 timetable. Context on release of post-1965 prisoners.