Air Chief Marshal (Ret.) Omar Dhani (23 January 1924 – 24 July 2009) was commander of the

Indonesian Air Force The Indonesian Air Force ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Udara (TNI-AU), literally "''Indonesian National Military-Air Force''") sometimes shortened as IDAF / IdAF, is the aerial branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. The I ...

(TNI-AU) from 1962 until 1965. He was a leading leftist figure in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

during the Sukarno era.

Early life and career

Dhani first worked on a plantation, then at the government radio station, in the ministry of information, and then in a bank. He enrolled in the Air Force Academy in 1950, and in 1956, attended the Royal Air Force Staff College, Andover in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

. He rose through the ranks to become Minister and Commander of the Air Force in January 1962, succeeded

Soerjadi Soerjadarma Air Chief Marshal (Ret.) Soerjadi Soerjadarma (EYD: Suryadi Suryadarma) (6 December 1912 – 16 August 1975) was the Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Air Force from 1946 to 1962. Biography Early life Born with the name Elang Soerjadi Soerjadarma, ...

after the latter was accused of not providing air support during the Battle of Arafura Sea. He was appointed as the commander of the Korps Siaga, later Korps Mandala Siaga (KOLAGA) during the 1963-1965 Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation, where he commanded three brigades.

Imprisonment and eventual release

His support for Sukarno, and his apparent support for the

30 September Movement The Thirtieth of September Movement ( id, Gerakan 30 September, abbreviated as G30S, also known by the acronym Gestapu for ''Gerakan September Tiga Puluh'', Thirtieth of September Movement) was a self-proclaimed organization of Indonesian Na ...

in 1965 was his undoing. For example, he had issued comments in support of the movement on the front page of the leftist daily Warta Bhakti. Shortly after the downfall of President Sukarno, he was arrested and sent to prison by the new government led by

Soeharto Suharto (; ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian army officer and politician, who served as the second and the longest serving president of Indonesia. Widely regarded as a military dictator by international observers, Suharto l ...

.Soerodjo, Benedicta and Soeparno, JMV (2001), ''Tuhan, Pergunakanlah Hati, Pikiran dan Tanganku—Pledoi Omar Dani (God, Use My Heart, Mind and Hands—Omar Dani's Testimony)'', PT Media Lintas Inti Nusantara, Jakarta, , p. 140 In 1995, at age 71, he was legally pardoned on the order of Suharto, along with

Soebandrio Subandrio (15 September 1914 – 3 July 2004) was an Indonesian politician and Foreign Minister and First Deputy Prime Minister of Indonesia under President Sukarno. Removed from office following the failed 1965 coup, he spent 29 years in pri ...

and Soetarto, two other longtime political prisoners. The date of their release was timed to occur the day before the fiftieth anniversary of Indonesian independence. This was apparently a humanitarian gesture aiming to make the Suharto regime open to reform; what those three political prisoners also had in common was that they were never officially members of the

Indonesian Communist Party The Communist Party of Indonesia ( Indonesian: ''Partai Komunis Indonesia'', PKI) was a communist party in Indonesia during the mid-20th century. It was the largest non-ruling communist party in the world before its violent disbandment in 1965 ...

. Nonetheless, the release was insisted upon by Suharto against the wishes of the Armed Forces. Upon his release from jail Dhani became one of the main sources for research into the Air Force's role during the 1965 coup. He died on 24 July 2009, at the age of 85. He is buried at

Jeruk Purut Cemetery Jeruk Purut is a cemetery in Jakarta, Indonesia. Layout Jeruk Purut covers a total area of . It is located in South Jakarta. Along with Kalibata Heroes Cemetery and Karet Bivak and Menteng Pulo public cemeteries, Jeruk Purut is one of the better ...

South Jakarta South Jakarta ( id, Jakarta Selatan; bew, Jakarte Beludik ), colloquially known as ''Jaksel'', is one of the five administrative cities which form the Special Capital Region of Jakarta, Indonesia. South Jakarta is not self-governed and does not ...

References

, - 1924 births 2009 deaths People from Surakarta Indonesian politicians Indonesian prisoners and detainees Indonesian Air Force air marshals Prisoners and detainees of Indonesia Recipients of Indonesian presidential pardons Chiefs of Staff of the Indonesian Air Force {{Indonesia-mil-bio-stub