Sukarno born
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245. Despatch From the Embassy in Indonesia to the Department of State0
Djakarta, March 14, 1960.
SUBJECT
- President Sukarno and His Impact on the Current Indonesian Scene
Summary
Throughout his fifteen years as head of the Indonesian state, President Sukarno’s formal authority and his ostensible domination of the government have never been as great as at present. Since assuming his current extraordinary powers in July, 1959, however, he has demonstrated a complete lack of capability to utilize them rationally toward the solution of Indonesia’s burgeoning problems. To an increasing extent government is being carried on by others, with Sukarno falling back [Page 474] into the negative role of a wielder of vetoes and an obstacle to be bypassed. More and more his attention is deviating from responsible administration toward concentration on the comparatively sterile process of political maneuver.
Sukarno’s reaction to the frustrations of his position has been one of increasing irrationality and emotional extremism, sharpened by physical deterioration. Having alienated
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Sukarno
President of Indonesia from 1945 to 1967
"Soekarno" redirects here. For the 2013 Indonesian film, see Soekarno (film).
In this Indonesian name, there is no family name nor a patronymic.
Sukarno[d][e] (6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970)[5] was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967.
Sukarno was the leader of the Indonesian struggle for independence from the Dutch colonialists. He was a prominent leader of Indonesia's nationalist movement during the colonial period and spent over a decade under Dutch detention until released by the invadingJapanese forces in World War II. Sukarno and his fellow nationalists collaborated to garner support for the Japanese war effort from the population, in exchange for Japanese aid in spreading nationalist ideas. Upon Japanese surrender, Sukarno and Mohammad Hattadeclared Indonesian independence on 17 August 1945, and Sukarno was appointed president. He led the Indonesian resistance to Dutch re-colonisation efforts v
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65. Memorandum From Director of Central Intelligence Dulles to President Eisenhower0
Washington, April 17, 1958.
SUBJECT
Sukarno, in speaking on 3 April to students in Djakarta, denied accusations that he is a Communist. He explained that these accusations result from a misunderstanding of his own efforts to combat colonialism and capitalism and to find working solutions for Indonesia’s numerous economic and political problems, as well as from a misinterpretation of Indonesia’s neutral foreign policy.
On 7 April in Demak, Central Java, in commemoration of a Moslem holiday, Sukarno made what might be termed a religio-political speech [Page 115] in which he explained himself as peculiarly endowed to screen and blend all trends and ideologies into a philosophy which would be right for Indonesia. He said that although he is a follower of Karl Marx, he is also a religious man and understands “the entire scope between Marxism and religion… .1 I know all trends and understand them.”
The contradiction between the two speeches is only an apparent one. Sukarno has repeatedly stated a
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