Dramatic funeral in Jakarta: lieutenant saved Nasution's life
Leeuwarder Courant, 7 October 1965, p. 1: report on the exhumation of the seven murdered army officers from the Lubang Buaya well and the generals' funeral, with Nasution's escape and Lt Tendean's death. It relays Suharto's televised claim that the bodies lay next to a base where the air force trained Pemuda Rakjat and
Anger mounts against the PKI over the killings (Berita Harian, 1965)
Berita Harian, 7 October 1965, p. 1: Sukarno's first cabinet meeting after 30 September; Nahdlatul Ulama demands a PKI ban and claims rebels armed Pemuda Rakyat, Gerwani and SOBSI, and that Pemuda Rakyat and Gerwani members trained at 'Sarang Buaya' (Lubang Buaya). Also press and rally restrictions in Sumatra and an ar
More arrests, slaughter of civilians by Communists in Central Java (Straits Times, 1965)
The Straits Times, 7 October 1965, p. 1: Radio Jakarta says communists slaughtered civilians in Central Java; Yogyakarta retaken and Col. Katamso's family reportedly killed; fierce fighting at Klaten and Cirebon, where rebels included armed People's Youth Front and Gerwani members; 200 armed communists captured. Gerwan
Backgrounds of the rebellion in Djakarta (conclusion)
Algemeen Handelsblad (1965-10-09), concluding part of 'Backgrounds of the rebellion in Djakarta': surveys PKI under Aidit, PNI infiltration (including its women's movement), PKI campaign against village ulama, the banned BPS and the army's rising role under Nasution. Names S.K. Trimurti as wife of Sajuti Melik and chai
Indonesia: Army nets 1,500 Reds (New York Herald Tribune, European ed., 11 October 1965)
New York Herald Tribune (European ed.), 11 Oct 1965, Reuters report 'Army Nets 1,500 Reds' from Djakarta. Says the army arrested at least 1,500 Communists, including members of 'the Gerwani Communist women's movement, some members of which are alleged to have tortured the six army generals', plus PKI band and choir mem
Der Bund, 12 October 1965: The instigator of the coup captured
Der Bund (Bern), 12 Oct 1965, Reuter report from Singapore: Lt Col Untung, leader of the 30 September Movement, reported captured; tense Central Java as armed Communists flee to the mountains; curfew reduced. Citing Malaysian radio quoting Radio Jakarta, a crowd burned down the Gerwani premises in Aceh (North Sumatra),
Thurgauer Zeitung, 12 October 1965: The anti-communist wave in Indonesia
Thurgauer Zeitung wire digest, 12 Oct 1965, on the anti-communist wave in Indonesia: Communists fleeing in Central Java, an angry crowd burning Gerwani premises in Aceh (per Radio Djakarta), Untung's capture, Antara placed under Army control, and Sukarno's remarks on 'imperialists'. Gerwani appears only in one sentence
Untung captured: Kremlin warns rebels (Straits Times, 1965)
The Straits Times, 13 October 1965, p. 1: Lt-Col. Untung is captured at Tegal; broadcasts claim rebels' support collapsed and many youths were rounded up; Medan rally demands a PKI ban; Soviet leaders warn Indonesia against imperialist threats; PKI chief Aidit still in hiding. Page also carries Vietnam war news. No men
Torture squads in Djakarta: how Indonesian generals died (South China Morning Post, 15 October 1965)
South China Morning Post, 15 Oct 1965, p.12, 'Torture squads in Djakarta: how Indonesian generals died', by a special correspondent. A lurid account of the 1 October killings: it says 'frenzied members of the Gerwani women's organisation' chanted insults and danced naked while Pemuda Rakjat youths emasculated six gener
Developments in Indonesia (editorial, Berita Harian, 1965)
Berita Harian editorial, 16 October 1965, p. 4, assessing the aftermath of the 30 September Movement: Untung's arrest crushes the armed army opposition, but 'opposition from cadres of Pemuda Rakyat and Gerwani as well as SOBSI' continues, probably as guerrilla action; speculates on a Sukarno-Nasution compromise over th
Nasakom for now without 'kom': communists frozen but not yet eliminated
Twentsch Dagblad Tubantia (21 Oct 1965), H.L. Leffelaar from Jakarta: the freezing of the PKI is an army victory over Sukarno; Nasakom 'without kom'. A poster targets Mrs Subandrio, head of the women's federation (Kowani), for not yet suspending Gerwani. Hatta criticises communist land seizures; a minister recounts Unt
Nasakom for now without 'kom'; Subandrio increasingly cornered
Twentsch Dagblad Tubantia (21 Oct 1965), H.L. Leffelaar from Jakarta: the freezing of the PKI is an army victory over Sukarno; Nasakom 'without kom'. A poster targets Mrs Subandrio, head of the women's federation (Kowani), for not yet suspending Gerwani. Hatta criticises communist land seizures; a minister recounts Unt
Secret meeting
Nieuwsblad van het Noorden, 26 October 1965, p. 5: citing Karya Bakti, reports a secret PKI meeting on 19 October led by M.H. Lukman, attended by economist J. Piry and 'Aidit's mother-in-law, Mrs Moedigdio' [Mudigdio], amid attempts to set up revolutionary councils in Cirebon and Bali. The text is partly garbled.
Jakarta expects Subandrio's role will soon be played out
Twentsch Dagblad Tubantia (26 Oct 1965), Leffelaar from Jakarta: Subandrio's role expected to end; successors speculated. Reports Karya Bhakti's claim of a secret PKI meeting under Lukman attended by Mrs Mudigdio, Aidit's mother-in-law, and economist J. Piry. Army raids continue, Onrust island used as an internment cam
Neue Berner Zeitung, 5 November 1965: How the Indonesian Communist Party wanted to seize power - mass murders planned
Neue Berner Zeitung, 5 Nov 1965, DPA report 'How the Communist Party of Indonesia wanted to seize power: mass murders were planned'. Citing army-held 'captured plans', it claims the PKI intended to kill 10,000+ officers and officials, and to arm one million peasants and workers as a militia built from Pemuda Rakyat, BT
Neue Zürcher Nachrichten, 5 November 1965: Was Sukarno himself involved in the coup?
Neue Zürcher Nachrichten, 5 Nov 1965, 'Was Sukarno himself involved in the coup?' (dpa). Same DPA account: army-held plans allegedly show the PKI intended to murder 10,000+ officers and arm one million peasants and workers as a people's militia from Pemuda Rakyat, BTI, SOBSI and Gerwani cadres; the coup failed in 18 ho
Walliser Bote, 5 November 1965: The greatest riddle of the Indonesian coup - Sukarno's conduct
Walliser Bote (5 Nov 1965) running a DPA report on the coup, repeating army-sourced claims of a PKI plan to murder 10,000+ officials and build a people's militia from Pemuda Rakyat, BTI, SOBSI and Gerwani cadres on the Peking model. Also puzzles over Sukarno's presence at Halim.
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
Berner Tagwacht, 6 November 1965: The greatest riddle of the Indonesian coup - Sukarno's conduct
Berner Tagwacht (Bern), 6 Nov 1965, DPA-based report on the Indonesian coup. Citing army-compiled 'captured plans', it claims the PKI planned to murder 10,000+ officers in five days and arm one million peasants and workers via Pemuda Rakyat, BTI, SOBSI and Gerwani cadres as a militia on the Peking model. It calls Sukar
Geschäftsblatt für den obern Teil des Kantons Bern, 6 November 1965: The greatest riddle of the coup - Sukarno's conduct
Geschäftsblatt für den obern Teil des Kantons Bern, 6 Nov 1965: the same DPA report on the Indonesian coup as in Berner Tagwacht, with other subheadings. It alleges PKI plans (from captured documents) to murder 10,000+ officers and to arm one million peasants and workers as a militia using Pemuda Rakyat, BTI, SOBSI and
Burgdorfer Tagblatt, 8 November 1965: Was Sukarno involved in the coup? Revelations from Indonesia
Burgdorfer Tagblatt (Burgdorf), 8 Nov 1965, 'Was Sukarno involved in the coup?', the same DPA report as in Berner Tagwacht with subheadings. It claims captured plans show the PKI intended to kill 10,000+ officers and officials, and to arm one million peasants and workers as a 'people's militia' using cadres of Pemuda R
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
Berita Harian, 13 Feb 1966: woman lawyer to defend Untung and Njoto
Berita Harian, 13 Feb 1966 (lead only). A woman lawyer, Dr Tien Sunito, described as a PKI member, was appointed to defend Lt Col Untung and Njoto, whose trials were due Monday. Not about Gerwani directly, but about women's roles in the 1965 trials.
Trial begins in Jakarta: Dutch woman defends Untung
Trouw (14 Feb 1966): on the eve of the Untung and Njono trials in Jakarta, Dutch-born lawyer Trees Soenito-Heyligers, herself a PKI member, takes on the defence after others refused. Profiles her and her husband as 'non-extreme' communists with Leiden training. No mention of Gerwani; context for the 1965-66 Mahmillub t
Indonesian Plot: Tribunal Verdict on Njono Due Today (Canberra Times, 21 February 1966)
Canberra Times, 21 Feb 1966, p. 6 (AAP-Reuter): the military tribunal trying PKI leader Njono is due to give its verdict; prosecution demanded death. His government-appointed woman lawyer, Mrs Trees Sunito, had 32 hours to prepare. Foreign press barred; Chinese agency criticism of the trial noted. Gerwani not named.
Indonesian Plot: Tribunal Verdict on Njono Due Today (Canberra Times, 21 February 1966), duplicate
Canberra Times, 21 Feb 1966, p. 6 (AAP-Reuter): the military tribunal trying PKI leader Njono is due to give its verdict; prosecution demanded death. His government-appointed woman lawyer, Mrs Trees Sunito, had 32 hours to prepare. Foreign press barred; Chinese agency criticism of the trial noted. Gerwani not named.
Unrest in Jakarta, Untung in court: strike force included Gerwani members
De Volkskrant report (24 Feb 1966) on unrest in Jakarta and the opening of Untung's trial. The prosecutor said his strike force of 5,000 included 2,000 communists, "men and women, of the organisations Gerwani, Pemuda Rakjat and the BTI". No claims of torture or sexual misconduct appear in this item.
Untung confesses to murder of six generals
Algemeen Dagblad (1966-02-25) on Lt.-Col. Untung's trial before the special military tribunal: he now admits that 'taking away' the six generals meant killing, denies PKI membership and claims he acted against a 'council of generals'. Notes Trees Sunito refused to defend him and sought clemency for the condemned Njono.
Students try to prevent swearing-in: trial of Untung begun
Gereformeerd Gezinsblad wire item (25 Feb 1966, p.1) on the opening of Colonel Untung's trial in Jakarta for treason and armed rebellion. The prosecutor claimed Untung gathered 5,000 people before the coup, including Tjakrabirawa troops, paratroops and 2,000 members of the PKI and its linked women's organisation Gerwan
Trial after failed coup: Untung admits order to murder generals
Het Vrije Volk/Reuters report (25 Feb 1966, p.21) on Colonel Untung's trial before the Jakarta court-martial: he admits his order to take away the generals meant they should be killed, says he acted to save Sukarno from a military plot and denies PKI membership. Lawyer Trees Soenito-Heyligers asked Sukarno to pardon Nj