The Pancasila Youth ( id, Pemuda Pancasila, ''PP'') is an Indonesian

far-right Far-right politics, also referred to as the extreme right or right-wing extremism, are political beliefs and actions further to the right of the left–right political spectrum than the standard political right, particularly in terms of being ...

paramilitary organization established in 1959. The organisation's name refers to ''Pancasila'', the official "five principles" of the Indonesian state. Pemuda Pancasila was involved in the

Indonesian mass killings of 1965–66 The Indonesian mass killings of 1965–66, also known as the Indonesian genocide, Indonesian Communist Purge, or Indonesian politicide ( id, Pembunuhan Massal Indonesia & Pembersihan G.30.S/PKI), were large-scale killings and civil unrest pri ...

, and supported the New Order regime of President Suharto. Its members extort money, control car parking and offer security services.

History

The organization officially dates its foundation as 28 October 1959 as the youth wing of the

League of Supporters of Indonesian Independence The League of Supporters of Indonesian Independence ( id, Ikatan Pendukung Kemerdekaan Indonesia, IPKI) was a political party in Indonesia established by former Army head General Abdul Haris Nasution as a vehicle for the Indonesian Army to enter th ...

party, which had been established by General

Abdul Haris Nasution General of the Army Abdul Haris Nasution ( Old Spelling: Abdoel Haris Nasution; 3 December 1918 – 6 September 2000), was a high-ranking Indonesian general and politician. He served in the military during the Indonesian National Revolution an ...

to promote the political interests of the

Indonesian Army The Indonesian Army ( id, Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Darat (TNI-AD), ) is the land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,000 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its ...

. This was shortly after President Sukarno's decree restoring the 1945 Constitution, which the military supported, and which the Pemuda Pancasila was to "back up". There is some ambiguity as to the actual founding date, and it is possible that 28 October was decided on retrospectively as it is the anniversary of the 1928

Youth Pledge The Youth Pledge ( id, Sumpah Pemuda) was a declaration made on 28 October 1928 by young Indonesian nationalists in the Second Youth Congress (). They proclaimed three ideas: one motherland, one nation and one language.Ricklefs (1982) p177 Back ...

. Spego Goni became the organization's chairman in 1961 In 1962, he proposed sending Pemuda Pancasila members to fight for "liberation" of

Netherlands New Guinea Dutch New Guinea or Netherlands New Guinea ( nl, Nederlands-Nieuw-Guinea, id, Nugini Belanda) was the western half of the island of New Guinea that was a part of the Dutch East Indies until 1949, later an overseas territory of the Kingd ...

in support of Indonesia's military campaign,

Operation Trikora Operation Trikora was an Indonesian military operation which aimed to seize and annex the Dutch overseas territory of Netherlands New Guinea in 1961 and 1962. After negotiations, the Netherlands signed the New York Agreement with Indonesia on ...

, supplying a fictitious list of names as evidence of the organization's readiness. Meanwhile, Pemuda Pancasila began expanding outside Jakarta. In

Medan Medan (; English: ) is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of North Sumatra, as well as a regional hub and financial centre of Sumatra. According to the National Development Planning Agency, Medan is one of the four main ...

, Effendi Nasution, leader of a youth organization that made money from extortion and bodyguard services, became the local Pemuda Pancasila leader. It was in Medan that the organization took the dominant role in the killings of suspected communists after the 1965 coup attempt, as described in the 2012 documentary '' The Act of Killing''. In Jakarta, the organization focused more on stealing property belonging to communist organizations and taking over and buildings, some of which were subsequently sold. Currently

Yapto Soerjosoemarno Yapto Soelistyo Soerjosoemarno is an Indonesian politician who is known as the leader of Pancasila Youth, an organization of quasi-official political gangsters that supported the New Order military dictatorship of Soeharto, while also engaging ...

is the leader of this organization,Youth Gangs and Otherwise in Indonesia
; RYTER, Loren, University of Michigan; presented at the Global Gangs Workshop, 14–15 May 2009 and was one of the semi-official political gangster ('' preman'') groups that supported the New Order military dictatorship of

Suharto 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 ...

. In ''The Act of Killing'', it is stated that the organization currently has three million members. National membership estimates from the late 1990s ranged from four to ten million people. In May 2020, the

Bekasi Bekasi (, su, ) is a city in West Java, Indonesia, located on the eastern border of Jakarta.the city of planet Bekasi is his nickname.It serves as a commuter city within the Jakarta metropolitan area. According to the 2020 Census by Statistics ...

chapter of the Pancasila Youth mailed out letters to prominent local businesspeople asking for Tunjangan Hari Raya in exchange for "peace and security". The Bekasi Police has demanded the chapter retract the letter.

Notable members

Ahmad Riza Patria Ahmad Riza Patria (born 17 December 1969) is an Indonesian politician who served as the 15th Vice Governor of Jakarta from 2020 to 2022. He previously served as a Vice Chairman of Second Commission of the People's Representative Council, Second ...

*Anwar Congo *

Bambang Soesatyo Bambang Soesatyo (born 10 September 1962), more colloquially referred to as Bamsoet, is an Indonesian politician and businessman, who is currently serving as the 15th Speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly since 2019, and as a Member of th ...

La Nyalla Mattalitti La Nyalla Mahmud Mattalitti (born 10 May 1959) is a former chairman of the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI). He was notorious for leading the Indonesian Football Savior Committee (KPSI) which stood as antithesis of PSSI during the first ha ...

Tjahjo Kumolo Tjahjo Kumolo (1 December 1957 – 1 July 2022) was an Indonesian politician. He served as Minister of Home Affairs in the Working Cabinet (2014–2019), and Minister of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform in the Onward Indonesia Cabinet ...

Zainudin Amali Zainudin Amali (born 16 March 1962) is an Indonesian politician. From October 2019 to March 2023, he served as Minister of Youth and Sport in the 41st Cabinet of Indonesia. He resigned from the position to focus on football governance because h ...

* Klemen Tinal *

History

Notable members

See also

References

Further reading