Sukarno (1901 – 1970)

Sukarno, also known as Soekarno, was the first President of Indonesia. Indonesians also remember him as Bung Karno. Like many Javanese people, he had one name; in religious contexts, he was occasionally referred to as ´Ahmad Sukarno´. He helped the country win its independence from the Netherlands and was President from 1945 to 1967, presiding with mixed success over the country´s turbulent transition to independence.

Sukarno's vision for the 1945 Indonesian constitution comprised the Pancasila (Sanskrit - five principles). Sukarno's political philosophy, Marhaenism, was guided by (in no particular order) elements of Marxism, nationalism and Islam. This is reflected in the Pancasila, in the order in which he originally espoused them in a speech on June 1, 1945.

  1. Nationalism (with a focus on national unity)
  2. Internationalism (one nation sovereign amongst equals)
  3. Representative democracy (all significant groups represented)
  4. Social Justice (Marxist influenced)
  5. Theism (with a secular bent)

Sukarno's government was not universally accepted in Indonesia. Indeed, many factions and regions attempted to separate themselves from his government, and there were several internal conflicts even during the period of armed insurgency against the Dutch. One such example is the leftist-backed coup attempt by elements of the military in Madiun, East Java in 1948, in which many supporters of communism were allegedly executed.

Sukarno also opposed the British-supported Federation of Malaysia, claiming that it was a neocolonial plot to advance British interests. In spite of his political overtures, which was partly justified when some political elements in British Borneo territories Sarawak and Brunei opposed the Federation plan and aligned themselves with Sukarno, Malaysia was proclaimed in September 1963. This led to the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation (Konfrontasi) and the end of remaining US military aid to Indonesia.

Sukarno was forced down from power by one of his generals, Suharto, who formally became President in March 1967.