Another Irian committee: West Irian liberation committee with Gerwis
De Vrije Pers item (14 Jan 1952) on a new West Irian liberation committee in (apparently) Surabaya/East Java, with posts split among Badan Perjuangan Irian, SOBSI, PKI, PNI, Indo-National Party and Murba; its organisation section includes Front Pemuda, Pemuda Kesatuan Indonesia and Gerwis. It also demands ending the Ro
Irian Committee Surabaya
Algemeen Indisch Dagblad (1952-01-18, p. 3): in Surabaya a Panitya Pembebasan Irian Barat is formed at the initiative of the Badan Perdjoangan Irian Timur Jawa with SOBSI, PKI, PNI, Murba and others; Gerwis sits in the organisation section with youth fronts. It seeks to end the RTC agreement and abolish the Union.
The Irian question
Java-Bode, 5 April 1954, p. 2: Rie Lips Odinot, a Gerwis congress guest, conveys Dutch peace-lovers' sympathy to Sukarno, who replies that good Dutch-Indonesian relations are impossible until West Irian is returned to Indonesia, calling it the greatest political barrier.
Unrest in Indonesia continues
Algemeen Handelsblad (1954-07-02): a Committee of Co-operating Parties of 31 parties and organisations, including PKI, PNI, NU, SOBSI and Gerwani, urges the Dutch government to declare High Commissioner Van Bylandt persona non grata, recall Indonesia's delegation, abolish the Netherlands-Indonesia Union unilaterally an
Cooperating parties want High Commissioner persona non grata
De Gooi- en Eemlander, 2 July 1954: a committee of 31 cooperating parties and organisations, including the PKI, PNI, SOBSI and Gerwani, demands that Dutch High Commissioner Count van Bylandt be declared persona non grata. It also asks for unilateral abolition of the Netherlands-Indonesia Union and a West Irian administ
Communique of cooperating Indonesian parties: expulsion of Dutch High Commissioner demanded
De Waarheid, 2 Jul 1954, p. 1: Jakarta dispatch that a committee of 31 cooperating Indonesian parties and organisations, including PNI, PKI, NU, SOBSI and Gerwani, asked the government to declare the Dutch High Commissioner Count van Bylandt persona non grata over his 25 June speech, recall the Hague negotiators if it
Action against Netherlands High Commissioner
Twentsch Dagblad Tubantia (2 Jul 1954): a committee of cooperating parties and organisations, including Gerwani with PKI, PNI, NU and SOBSI, urges the government to declare Netherlands High Commissioner Count van Bylandt persona non grata, recall the delegation from The Hague, end the Union and form a West Irian admini
Indonesian parties act against High Commissioner: committee asks unilateral end of Union
Ons Noorden (3 Jul 1954): a committee of 31 cooperating parties and organisations, Gerwani among them with PKI, PNI, NU and SOBSI, urges the government to declare Netherlands High Commissioner Count van Bylandt persona non grata, recall the delegation from The Hague, end the Netherlands–Indonesia Union and form a West
Mass demonstration on Medan Merdeka for West Irian
De Nieuwsgier front-page report (6 Dec 1954) on a mass demonstration at Medan Merdeka, Jakarta, organised by the West Irian liberation committee with women's organisations, demanding incorporation of Irian and rupture with the Netherlands. Speakers included Mrs. Sudarman Hadikusumo, Mrs. Kartowijono (Perwari) and Mrs.
Keynotes of the Council Meeting: Unity and Confidence (Bertrand, 1955)
Simone Bertrand, WIDF Assistant General Secretary, reports in 1955 on the Fifth WIDF Council meeting in Geneva (45 countries). She cites GERWANI as a remarkable example: mostly peasant and plantation women, membership up from 80,000 to 281,000 in a year, and with nine organisations it formed a committee opposing a US b
For Friendship: Gyanchand, Suryadarma and Che Zahara on the World Congress of Mothers (1955)
1955 WIDF magazine feature 'For Friendship' with statements by Anusuya Gyanchand (India), Utami Suryadarma (Indonesia) and Che Zahara (Malaya) for the World Congress of Mothers. Suryadarma, a vice-president of the Preparatory Committee and of the Foundation for the Well-being of Indonesian Children, links Bandung to pe
Ten years of the Republic (Cor Geugjes)
De Waarheid, 17 Aug 1955, p. 3: Cor Geugjes's article for the Republic's tenth anniversary, covering Dutch colonial violence, the Bandung Conference, the Ali Sastroamidjojo government's fall and replacement by a Masjumi-PSI cabinet under Harahap, and the PKI's election platform. It lists Gerwani only as 'the strong wom
Economic aid offered to Indonesia (Dulles in Jakarta)
Nieuwe Tilburgsche Courant, 13 March 1956: report on US Secretary of State Dulles's visit to Jakarta, where about two dozen demonstrators shouted 'Abolish SEATO' and a young woman of the left-leaning Gerwani threw a paper at his car and was detained for questioning. Dulles also met Sukarno, discussed New Guinea and off
Indonesia in a bird's-eye view
Java-Bode, 13 February 1957, p. 2: column of Indonesian miscellany (shipping, floods, police study trip to Japan, FAO expert). One item says 28 parties and organisations in Maluku and West Irian, including PNI, PKI, PSII, Gerwani and Badan Rebut Irian, telegraphed the Indonesian UN delegation backing Indonesia's West I
President Sukarno brings new strength to the Indonesian people (Renmin Ribao, 17 February 1958)
Renmin Ribao commentary, 17 Feb 1958, p. 5: praises Sukarno's nine-nation tour, backs Indonesia's West Irian claim and calls the PRRI/Permesta rebels imperialist-instigated. Notes that SOBSI, Pemuda Rakjat, Gerwani, BTI and seventeen Sumatran organisations backed the arrest of the rebels, and cites Aidit's call to brin
President Sukarno brings new strength to the Indonesian people (Renmin Ribao, 17 February 1958)
Renmin Ribao commentary, 17 Feb 1958, p. 5: praises Sukarno's nine-nation tour, backs Indonesia's West Irian claim and calls the PRRI/Permesta rebels imperialist-instigated. Notes that SOBSI, Pemuda Rakjat, Gerwani, BTI and seventeen Sumatran organisations backed the arrest of the rebels, and cites Aidit's call to brin
Afro-Asian Women's Conference holds plenary session (Renmin Ribao, 18 February 1958)
Renmin Ribao, 18 Feb 1958, p. 6 (Xinhua, Colombo): first plenary of the Afro-Asian Women's Conference. Maria Ulfah Santoso, head of the Indonesian delegation, appeals for support on West Irian and against destructive use of atomic energy; the Chinese delegation walks out over the UN/UNESCO observer. Gerwani is not name
Afro-Asian Women's Conference holds plenary session (Renmin Ribao, 18 February 1958)
Renmin Ribao, 18 Feb 1958, p. 6 (Xinhua, Colombo): first plenary of the Afro-Asian Women's Conference. Maria Ulfah Santoso, head of the Indonesian delegation, appeals for support on West Irian and against destructive use of atomic energy; the Chinese delegation walks out over the UN/UNESCO observer. Gerwani is not name
Millions of Women Abroad behind the Indonesian People's Struggle for Independence
Api Kartini (1959) article on how the WIDF (GWDS) and millions of women abroad supported Indonesia's independence struggle, noting Gerwani as an Indonesian member. Recounts WIDF's 1947 message to the UN against the Dutch aggression, Dutch women's protests (Schoonhoven, NVB), 1949 actions and later solidarity on Irian B
Pravda, 6 May 1959: 'The Indonesian people on guard for peace' (signed Sudjinah, Djakarta)
Page 5 of Pravda (Moscow, 6 May 1959) with a piece headed 'The Indonesian people on guard for peace', signed 'Sudjina, Djakarta' (identified by the sweep as Sudjinah). It reports the Indonesian Peace Supporters Committee: Prof. Purbodiningrat's statements, an April special session demanding the dissolution of SEATO, su
We All Are Lumumba (Lekra booklet, 1961)
Short Lekra booklet of 1961 mourning Patrice Lumumba, with poems by S. Anantaguna, Bandaharo, Njoto and Sitor Situmorang, translated into English (file name credits Bintang Suradi). It closes with 'A Letter for Pauline', written by the young woman writer Sugiarti Siswadi for International Women's Day 1961. Gerwani is n
We All Are Lumumba (Lekra booklet, 1961)
Short Lekra booklet of 1961 mourning Patrice Lumumba, with poems by S. Anantaguna, Bandaharo, Njoto and Sitor Situmorang, translated into English (file name credits Bintang Suradi). It closes with 'A Letter for Pauline', written by the young woman writer Sugiarti Siswadi for International Women's Day 1961. Gerwani is n
Sukarno now supreme commander: New Guinea plans; speech at Gerwani congress
De Tijd/De Maasbode Reuter item (15 Dec 1961): Sukarno chaired the new 15-member national defence council as supreme commander to plan the "return" of West New Guinea. It notes that at the opening of the Gerwani congress he announced again he would "use armed force to liberate West Irian".
Sukarno now supreme commander: New Guinea plans being worked out
Nieuwe Haarlemsche Courant, 15 December 1961: Reuters report that Sukarno chaired the first meeting of a 15-member national defence council as supreme commander for the 'return' of Western New Guinea. At the opening of the Gerwani congress he again said he would use armed force to liberate West Irian.
Subandrio again threatens action
Leeuwarder Courant, 16 December 1961, p. 8: short report that Indonesian defence minister Subandrio, speaking at a Gerwani conference, said Indonesia would have to resort to military confrontation if the Netherlands grants Western New Guinea independence, while saying Indonesia is for peace. The paper calls Gerwani a '
Tomorrow in Yogyakarta: Sukarno's 'last order' on West New Guinea
De Nieuwe Limburger, 18 Dec 1961: Foreign Minister Subandrio, speaking at a Gerwani conference, says Indonesia would have to act militarily if the Dutch grant independence to a 'Papua state'; Sukarno's 'last order' on West New Guinea is due 19 December (the Trikora). Shows Gerwani as a platform for the West Irian confr
Special intercession: Dutch church prayer on West Irian; Gerwani conference mention
De Waarheid, 18 Dec 1961, p. 6: mainly the Dutch Reformed Church's call for special prayer on West Irian. The last paragraph notes that in Jakarta Foreign Minister Subandrio spoke on West Irian at the congress of the 'large progressive women's movement Gerwani', after Sukarno's address the previous week stressing unity
Disarmament Congress (Moscow, 1962)
Api Kartini (1962) report on the World Congress for Disarmament and Peace, Moscow, July 1962 (about 2,500 delegates, 100 countries). The Indonesian delegation was led by Dr. Hurustiati Subandrio, who attacked colonialism and cited Irian Barat; Rameswari Nehru and J.D. Bernal are quoted. Also covers Indonesian mass-orga
Dilemmas of Indonesian Communism (van der Kroef, 1962)
Article by Justus M. van der Kroef (Pacific Affairs, summer 1962) on the PKI's dilemmas under Guided Democracy: dependence on Sukarno, the July 1960 'Evaluation' clash with the army, and the party's use of mass fronts. Gerwani is named as the PKI's women's front: its organ was aggressive without censure in 1961, and in
Recognise the Indonesian just claim: Unite to build friendship!
Tribune (Sydney), 10 Jan 1962, p. 1 front-page editorial backing Sukarno's proclamation of West Irian as an Indonesian province and attacking the Menzies government and ALP leader Calwell. Gerwani appears only in a photo caption: delegates welcome Sukarno at the opening night in Jakarta of the recent Gerwani National C