Mass arrests by Indonesian army: Communist offices burned (The Irish Times, 11 October 1965)
The Irish Times, 11 Oct 1965, p.66 (Reuter and AP): mass arrests of Communists in Jakarta (about 1,500 detained) after PKI headquarters were burned; Muslims and army organise processions demanding Aidit be hanged. Those arrested include Gerwani members, some alleged to have tortured the six generals, and a crowd of Mus
Mass arrests in Indonesia: 3,500 Communists detained during round-up (The Scotsman, 11 October 1965)
The Scotsman, 11 Oct 1965 (Djakarta, Sunday): mass arrests of Communists after the reported discovery of arms and a radio transmitter at burned PKI headquarters, with detainees put at 3,500 including rebels in Java. Among those arrested are Gerwani members alleged to have tortured the six generals whose mutilated bodie
Country-wide hunt for Reds in Indonesia: weapons seized (The Times of India, 11 October 1965)
The Times of India, 11 Oct 1965, p.11 (Times of India News Service, Reuter, AFP): country-wide hunt for Communists and weapons seized; 1,500 reported detained; mobs raid Njoto's and Aidit's houses; Radio Jakarta urges people to report members of the PKI, its youth and women's wings. A Muslim crowd ransacked a suburban
Communists 'taking to hills in Indonesia': Soviet warning to Sukarno (The Scotsman, 12 October 1965)
The Scotsman, 12 Oct 1965 (Reuter and AP): travellers report thousands of Communists, some armed, taking to the hills of Central Java to escape an army dragnet, with party branch officials rounded up; the Soviet Union voices a warning to Sukarno, and the US ambassador Marshall Green comments on a general step. Short an
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
Jakarta women danced as generals were murdered (The Hindustan Times, 15 October 1965)
The Hindustan Times, 15 Oct 1965: report of a police witness's account at Lubang Buaya that Communist women danced naked in a circle while six generals and a lieutenant (mistaken for Nasution) were tortured to death, with torn-out fingernails and faces mutilated. Gerwani is not named, but this is an early instance of t
Sukarno will act against Reds (The Hindustan Times, 7 November 1965)
The Hindustan Times, 7 Nov 1965 (Reuter, Bogor, 6 Nov): Sukarno promises action against the PKI while the army hunts its members; Subandrio reports Sukarno scolding Njoto for the party's 'childish disease'. The armed forces bulletin says nine Gerwani 'suicide members' were killed by paratroopers when they blocked the r
The Hindustan Times, 8 Nov 1965: the Bali war administrator has suspended the PKI and affiliates, including Gerwani (Women's Movement), Pemuda Rakjat, students' association, peasants' union and SOBSI, with daily reporting to the military, removal of signboards in five days and a curfew from 3 Nov. It notes Sukarno was
The Times of India, 8 Nov 1965, p.1 (Jakarta, 7 Nov): the PKI and affiliated mass organisations in Bali, including Gerwani (Women's Movement), Pemuda Rakjat, Lekra, BTI, student, teachers' (PGRI) and SOBSI unions, have been suspended; leaders must report daily and a curfew applies. Sukarno says he is considering bannin
Sukarno given list of suspected MPs; women demonstrate against Communists (South China Morning Post, 9 November 1965)
South China Morning Post, 9 Nov 1965, p.20 (Jakarta, 8 Nov): Sukarno is given a list of suspected PKI members of parliament; about 10,000 housewives, girl students and actresses marched to Suharto's HQ and the National Front office shouting support for Sukarno and the armed forces, denounced Gerwani, 'the PKI's women's
The Guardian, 9 Nov 1965, p.12 (BUP/Reuter, Jakarta, 8 Nov): about 10,000 Indonesian women and girls, led by drummers and majorettes, marched from Suharto's headquarters to the National Front office shouting support for Sukarno and against the Communists, and called for the dissolution of Gerwani, 'the Communist women'
The Irish Times, 9 Nov 1965, p.44: Sukarno tells his Cabinet communism should not be suppressed but the PKI need not be kept; 102 MPs are listed for investigation; Malaya's Tunku accuses Subandrio of involvement in the coup. About 10,000 housewives and women students marched in Jakarta led by drum majorettes, demanding
The masses did not rise (The Hindustan Times, 8 December 1965)
The Hindustan Times, 8 Dec 1965, Dennis Bloodworth (Singapore), 'PKI Debacle I: The Masses Did Not Rise': analysis of why the PKI collapsed after the 1 Oct coup: overrated membership, reliance on Sukarno and on army and air force penetration, no general strike, SOBSI dissolving. It reports Untung's alleged claim that m
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
Not the old Subandrio (The Scotsman, 29 October 1966)
The Scotsman, 29 Oct 1966, 'Not the old Subandrio': profile of Sukarno's former foreign minister, condemned to death by a military tribunal for treason and bearing 'heavy responsibility for the rise of the PKI'. It traces his career and notes he is a scapegoat the Suharto regime can blame while Sukarno is retained for
Jakarta trial for women (South China Morning Post, 4 February 1975)
South China Morning Post, 4 Feb 1975, p.22 (AFP, Jakarta, 3 Feb): four leading women of the outlawed PKI went on trial in Jakarta District Court charged with conspiracy to topple the Government. Miss Sulami was secretary general and the other three were board members of the 'defunct communist women's movement' (Gerwani
Chaos at Crocodile Hole (The Guardian, 23 May 1998)
The Guardian, 23 May 1998, p.24, Martin Woollacott, 'Chaos at Crocodile Hole': comment on Suharto's fall, arguing it is no triumph and that his legacy of division (military vs Islamists, rich vs poor, ethnic and religious tensions) leaves the country fragile. It opens with the Crocodile Hole (Lubang Buaya) shrine, whos