Sutomo
| Sutomo (Bung Tomo) |
|
|---|---|
Soetomo
|
|
| 10th Minister of Manpower and Transmigration of the Republic of Indonesia | |
|
In office 27 August 1964 – 26 March 1966 |
|
| President | Soekarno |
| Preceded by | Ahem Erningpradja |
| Succeeded by | Awaluddin Djamin |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 3, 1920 Surabaya, East Java
|
| Died | October 7, 1981 (aged 61) Mount Arafat, Saudi Arabia
|
| Nationality |
Indonesia
|
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
Sutomo (3 October 1920 – 7 October 1981), also known as Bung Tomo, is best known for his role as an Indonesian military leader during the Indonesian National Revolution against the Netherlands. He played a central role in Battle of Surabaya when the Dutch attacked the city in October and November 1945.
Sutomo was born in Kampung Blauran in the centre of Surabaya to a clerk father, Kartawan Tjiptowidjojo, and mother of mixed Javanese, Sundanese and Madurese descent. He had received Dutch secondary education before the Japanese occupation. Alongside menial jobs, he joined the Indonesian Scouting organisation and at the age of seventeen as the second Pramuka Garuda; a rank achieved by only three Indonesians before the Japanese occupation during World War II. During the occupation period he worked for the Dōmei Tsushin in Surabaya. Sutomo became famous by setting up Radio Pembarontakan (Radio Rebellion), which promoted unity and fighting spirit among the Indonesian pemuda (youth).
"Hey British soldiers! As long as the Indonesian bulls, the youth of Indonesia, have red blood that can make a piece of white cloth, red and white, we will never surrender. Friends, fellow fighters, especially the youth of Indonesia, we will fight on, we will expel the colonialists from our Indonesian land that we love... Long have we suffered, been exploited, trampled on. Now is the time for us to seize our independence. Our slogan: FREEDOM OR DEATH. ALLAHU AKBAR!... ALLAHU AKBAR!... ALLAHU AKBAR!... FREEDOM!"
Bung Tomo's speech, 9 November 1945.
During the Japanese occupation, Sutomo was chosen in 1944 as a member of the Japanese-sponsored Gerakan Rakyat Baru (New People's Movement). During the early stages of the Indonesian National Revolution he played a central role when Surabaya came under British attack. Although the Surabaya city was lost to the British, the battle served to galvanise Indonesian and international opinion in support of the independence cause. Sutomo spurred thousands of Indonesians to action with his distinctive, emotional speaking-style of his radio broadcasts. His "clear, burning eyes, that penetrating, slightly nasal voice, or that hair-raising oratorical style that second only to Sukarno's in its emotional power". During the Bersiap perod, Sutomo encouraged atrocities against Indonesians of mixed European–Asian ancestry and personally supervised the summary executions of hundreds of civilians. These are archived eye witness testimony of the events of 22 October 1945.
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Wikipedia