Untruthful communist business: Gerwani congress in Jakarta
De Maasbode, 5 Apr 1954: Sukarno receives at the palace women attending the Gerwani congress in Jakarta (described as a continuation of the communist Gerwis). The Dutch communist MP Mrs Lips-Odinot conveys the 'peace-loving' Dutch people's support; Sukarno says New Guinea is the main barrier to good relations. Shows Ge
CIA intelligence survey of the PKI's history, structure and front organisations, May 1955, before the September 1955 elections. Section III.E (report pp. 49-50) profiles Gerwani: founded 1950 as Gerwis, renamed Gerwani at the March 1954 congress, 25,000+ members, S.K. Trimurti general chairman and Umi Sardjono chairman
Pravda, 18 Dec 1961: Fourth Gerwani Congress
Pravda no. 353, 18 December 1961 (full issue). Page 3 has a dispatch by correspondent O. Skalkin from Jakarta on the Fourth Gerwani Congress: 400 delegates from Java, Moluccas, Sumatra, Bali, Kalimantan; Sukarno's speech condemning anti-communism, backing NASAKOM and the West Irian claim, and praising Soviet support. N
Indonesian parties and organisations demand severe punishment of rioters (Renmin Ribao, 21 May 1963)
Renmin Ribao, 21 May 1963, p. 3 (Xinhua, Jakarta): Indonesian parties and mass organisations condemn the May 1963 anti-Chinese riots in Cirebon, Tegal, Bandung and Bogor as counter-revolutionary and link them to Malaysia and the US Peace Corps. Gerwani's Central Committee calls the Bandung incidents despicable acts vio
Indonesian parties and organisations demand severe punishment of rioters (Renmin Ribao, 21 May 1963)
Renmin Ribao, 21 May 1963, p. 3 (Xinhua, Jakarta): Indonesian parties and mass organisations condemn the May 1963 anti-Chinese riots in Cirebon, Tegal, Bandung and Bogor as counter-revolutionary and link them to Malaysia and the US Peace Corps. Gerwani's Central Committee calls the Bandung incidents despicable acts vio
Pravda, 7 Oct 1965: events in Indonesia, demands to ban Gerwani
Pravda no. 280, 7 October 1965 (full issue). Page 3 TASS item 'On the events in Indonesia' (Jakarta, 6 Oct): Nahdlatul Ulama and other groups, via Angkatan Bersendjata, demand Sukarno ban the PKI, Pemuda Rakyat, Gerwani, SOBSI; mass arrests of Communists; Sukarno urges calm ('saving the revolution is more important tha
Pravda, 7 Oct 1965: events in Indonesia, demands to ban Gerwani (excerpt)
Pravda no. 280, 7 October 1965 (excerpt of the page). Page 3 TASS item 'On the events in Indonesia' (Jakarta, 6 Oct): Nahdlatul Ulama and other groups, via Angkatan Bersendjata, demand Sukarno ban the PKI, Pemuda Rakyat, Gerwani, SOBSI; mass arrests of Communists; Sukarno urges calm ('saving the revolution is more impo
Neues Deutschland, 7 Oct 1965, p. 7: Sukarno chaired the session
Neues Deutschland, 7 October 1965, p. 7: ADN/ND report 'Sukarno leitete Sitzung', quoting TASS on the Indonesian cabinet meeting at Bogor after the 30 September events. Sukarno urged calm; the newspaper 'Angkatan Bersendjata' published the demand of Nahdlatul Ulama and others that he ban the PKI, Pemuda Rakyat, the wom
Self-defence from panic: commentary on the hunt for communists
De Volkskrant commentary (11 Oct 1965) warning that the hunt for communists could drive Aidit's followers to armed self-defence. It describes Muslim demonstrators wrecking Aidit's and Njoto's houses and then "the headquarters of the communist women's organisation Gerwani", and army occupation of PKI headquarters in Ace
Evening Post (Wellington), 11 Oct 1965, AAP-Reuter/AP/NZPA report: mass arrests of Communists in Jakarta (about 1,500 detained in a week, 2,000 in Java) and fears of a Communist counter-terror. A Muslim mob ransacked a suburban Gerwani office, destroying files and furniture. Saura Islam alleges Communist women tried to
Fears of a New Surge of Red Terror in Indonesia (Evening Post, 11 October 1965), headline clipping
Headline-only clipping 'Fears of a New Surge of Red Terror in Indonesia' from the Evening Post of 11 Oct 1965; no further text.
Fears of a New Surge of Red Terror in Indonesia (Evening Post, 11 October 1965), opening clipping
Opening clipping of the Evening Post article of 11 Oct 1965: mass arrests of Communists continued in Jakarta, with fears of a retaliatory terror campaign; unofficial estimates of 1,500 detained in a week and 2,000 captured in Java. Gerwani is not mentioned in this fragment.
Fears of a New Surge of Red Terror in Indonesia (Evening Post, 11 October 1965), opening clipping (duplicate)
Opening clipping of the Evening Post article of 11 Oct 1965: mass arrests of Communists continued in Jakarta, with fears of a retaliatory terror campaign; unofficial estimates of 1,500 detained in a week and 2,000 captured in Java. Gerwani is not mentioned in this fragment.
Fears of a New Surge of Red Terror in Indonesia (Evening Post, 11 October 1965), clipping on Gerwani office raid
Clipping from the Evening Post, 11 Oct 1965: a Muslim mob ransacked a suburban Gerwani office, destroying files and burning furniture, after PKI headquarters was burned; Sukarno reportedly gave the Army 'full power'; PNI backs the Army; Saura Islam claims Communist women tried to kidnap Muslim women.
Communist Party ban
Townsville Daily Bulletin, 19 Oct 1965, p. 1 (AAP): Radio Djakarta reports the PKI and affiliated organisations banned, including Pemuda Rakjat, Gerwani ('the women's wing') and the Communist-dominated Sobsi trade unions, all prime targets of the Army's anti-Communist campaign. Notes that only Sukarno can legally ban a
Communist Party ban
Townsville Daily Bulletin, 19 Oct 1965, p. 1 (AAP): Radio Djakarta reports the PKI and affiliated organisations banned, including Pemuda Rakjat, Gerwani ('the women's wing') and the Communist-dominated Sobsi trade unions, all prime targets of the Army's anti-Communist campaign. Notes that only Sukarno can legally ban a
Stance of other parties in Indonesia: statements demanding dissolution of PKI and mass organisations
Renmin Ribao compilation (20 Oct 1965, p. 5) of Indonesian organisations' statements after 30 September, taken from Radio Republik Indonesia and Antara. Nahdlatul Ulama and affiliates, Perti and others demand dissolution of the PKI, Pemuda Rakyat and Gerwani; the NU text alleges Gerwani and Pemuda Rakyat members were t
FBIS-monitored ANTARA report (27 Oct 1965) on a demonstration by the Action Coordinating Body to Crush the 30 September Movement at the Foreign and Home Affairs departments, demanding dissolution of the PKI and sister organisations, purges of subdistricts and the Labour Ministry, and regretting China's attitude on the
Sukarno: my life is in danger
Trouw (3 Nov 1965), wire report: Sukarno tells ministers his life is in danger; demonstrations in Medan demand Subandrio's removal; a Muslim leader urges dissolving the PKI. Reports that Gerwani was expelled from the women's congress Kowani, chaired by Mrs Subandrio. Early evidence of Gerwani's isolation weeks after 30
Somogyi Néplap, 7 Nov 1965: Sukarno condemns anti-communism; nine women killed by army in Central Java
Somogyi Neplap (Hungary), 7 Nov 1965, p. 2: MTI/AFP dispatch from Bogor on Sukarno's cabinet meeting, where he condemned anti-communist revenge and upheld NASAKOM. States an army press communiqué that soldiers fired on marching Gerwani women in Solo, Central Java, killing nine. Also notes de facto bans on the PKI and t
ANP news report, 8 November 1965, 15.00 (Indonesia)
Second ANP bulletin of 8 Nov 1965 (Reuters/UPI): soldiers seal off Jakarta's Chinese quarter and search houses; separately about 10,000 women march anti-communist, pledge support to Sukarno and the army, and demand Gerwani's dissolution.
ANP news report, 8 November 1965, 18/19.00 (Indonesia)
Third ANP bulletin of 8 Nov 1965: troops seal Jakarta's Chinese quarter; about 10,000 women march in support of Sukarno and the army against the PKI. Their resolution demands the dissolution of Gerwani and government takeover of communist-run schools, linking the attack on Gerwani to its educational work.
251 dead in Central Java; women demonstrate against the PKI
Leeuwarder Courant, 9 November 1965, p. 5: report that about 10,000 housewives, schoolgirls and actresses marched in Jakarta to the National Front office demanding dissolution of Gerwani and state control of communist-run schools, while over a million demanded the PKI's dissolution. Governor Mokhtar says 251 were kille
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'
Dunántúli Napló, 9 Nov 1965: Indonesian roundup, demands to ban PKI and Gerwani permanently
Dunántúli Napló, 9 Nov 1965, news roundup on Indonesia after 30 September: PKI ban spreads to Bali, Sukarno keeps Nasakom but hints at measures, press closures, 102 deputies blacklisted. Notably, right-wing forces staged a women's demonstration in Jakarta marching to Suharto's house and the National Front, demanding a
Somogyi Néplap, 9 Nov 1965: 'New anti-left measures'; demands to ban PKI and Gerwani
Somogyi Neplap (Hungary), 9 Nov 1965, p. 2: MTI report 'New anti-left measures' from Jakarta. A right-wing women's demonstration marched to Suharto's house and the National Front, demanding a final ban of the PKI and Gerwani. Also covers searches in Jakarta's old town, a blacklist of 102 deputies, the PKI ban extended
Tolna Megyei Népújság, 9 Nov 1965: hunt for communists in Indonesia, demands to ban PKI and Gerwani
Hungarian provincial daily Tolna Megyei Népújság, 9 Nov 1965, reporting from Western agencies on the right-wing hunt for communists in Indonesia: PKI ban extended to Bali, Sukarno's NASAKOM speech, Subandrio, press closures, Jakarta old town search. A right-wing women's demonstration marched to Suharto's house and dema
Women Denounce Reds (Sunraysia Daily, 10 November 1965)
Sunraysia Daily (Mildura), 10 November 1965, p. 14, AAP/UPI report from Jakarta that 10,000 women (housewives, students, actresses) denounced Gerwani as 'a disgrace to Indonesian womanhood' and demanded its dissolution. They marched from Suharto's headquarters to the National Front with bands and batons and handed a pe
Women Denounce Reds (Sunraysia Daily, 10 November 1965), duplicate
Sunraysia Daily (Mildura), 10 November 1965, p. 14, AAP/UPI report from Jakarta that 10,000 women (housewives, students, actresses) denounced Gerwani as 'a disgrace to Indonesian womanhood' and demanded its dissolution. They marched from Suharto's headquarters to the National Front with bands and batons and handed a pe
A Fighting Editor: Jogjakarta (Canberra Times, 3 April 1967)
Canberra Times, 3 Apr 1967, p. 2: Creighton Burns profiles Jussac Margo Rahardjo, editor of Pelopor Jogja, a former Radio Australia announcer turned anti-Communist propagandist. In 1965 local authorities, he says, used Gerwani, which then controlled the Jogjakarta federation of women's associations, as 'the lever' to p