The Pancasila Youth (, PP) is an Indonesian

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

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 Large-scale killings and civil unrest primarily targeting members and supposed sympathizers of the Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI) were carried out in Indonesia from 1965 to 1966. Other affected groups included alleged communist sympathise ...

, and supported the

New Order New Order may refer to: Politics * ''L'Ordine Nuovo'' (''The New Order''), a socialist newspaper edited by Antonio Gramsci in the early 1920s * ''New Order in East Asia'', propaganda term for Japanese-dominated East Asia announced by Japanese ...

regime of President

Suharto Suharto (8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian Officer (armed forces), military officer and politician, and dictator, who was the second and longest serving president of Indonesia, serving from 1967 to 1998. His 32 years rule, cha ...

. Its members are informally known for

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

, illegal retributions from parking fee and off-hand 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 (, IPKI) was a right-wing nationalist political party in Indonesia established by former Army head General Abdul Haris Nasution as a vehicle for the Indonesian Army to enter the realm of politics. ...

party, which had been established by General

Abdul Haris Nasution Abdul 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 and remained in the military during the subsequent turmoil of ...

to promote the political interests of the

Indonesian Army The Indonesian Army ( (TNI-AD), ) is the army, land branch of the Indonesian National Armed Forces. It has an estimated strength of 300,400 active personnel. The history of the Indonesian Army has its roots in 1945 when the (TKR) "People's Se ...

. 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 (, ), officially titled as Decision of the Congress of Indonesian Youth ( van Ophuijsen spelling ) is the pledge made by young Indonesians since 28 October 1928, which defined the identity of Indonesians. The decision proclaimed t ...

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

Dutch New Guinea Dutch New Guinea or Netherlands New Guinea (, ) 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 Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1949 to 1962. It contained ...

in support of Indonesia's military campaign,

Operation Trikora Operation Trikora () was a combined Soviet– Indonesian military operation which aimed to seize and annex the Dutch overseas territory of New Guinea in 1961 and 1962. After negotiations, the Netherlands signed the New York Agreement with Ind ...

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

Medan Medan ( , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of North Sumatra. The nearby Strait of Malacca, Port of Belawan, and Kualanamu International Airport make Medan a regional hub and multi ...

, 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 ''The Act of Killing'' (, ) is a 2012 documentary film directed by Joshua Oppenheimer, with Christine Cynn and an anonymous Indonesian co-directing. The film follows individuals who participated in the Indonesian mass killings of 1965–66, whe ...

''. 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 (Indonesia), New Order military dictatorship of Suharto, ...

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

military dictatorship of

. 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 (, ) is the List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city with the largest population in the province of West Java, Indonesia, located on the eastern border of Jakarta. It serves as a commuter town, commuter city within the Jakarta m ...

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 demanded the chapter retract the letter.

Notable members

Zulkifli Hasan Rapat Kerja Nasional Srikandi Pemuda Pancasila

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*Anwar Congo *

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La Nyalla Mattalitti La Nyalla Mahmud Mattalitti (born 10 May 1959) is an Indonesian politician. Currently speaker of the Regional Representative Council, he was formerly chairman of the Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI). Career During the first half of Djoh ...

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* Klemen Tinal *

History

Notable members

See also

References

Further reading