Greatness Of The Heart Of General Urip Sumohardjo And The Election Of General Sudirman As Commander Of TKR

Inauguration of General Sudirman (Source: National Library)

JAKARTA - Colonel Soedirman was elected as the Commander of the TKR / Commander of the Indonesian Armed Forces at the same time as the youngest through the TKR Conference, 12 November 1945. The TKR Conference was held because Supriyadi had never appeared since President Soekarno was appointed as Minister of People's Security and TKR Commander.

Supriyadi's whereabouts are still mysterious. Either he is alive or dead. According to the family version, Supriyadi died during the PETA rebellion in Blitar. The defeat of Supriyadi and the troops was because their rebellion strategy was leaked to the Japanese.

Supriyadi's father, Darmadi, is a member of the first batch of PETA. Darmadi is in the same class as Suharto and AH Nasution. In 1945, Darmadi served as a senior prosecutor in Kediri. Darmadi already knew that his son would carry out a PETA rebellion in Blitar. However, Darmadi's position at that time was being held by the Japanese leader in Kediri.

Supriyadi's younger brother, Suroto, has let his brother go, as his father's message was legowo over the death of his son on the battlefield. However, what upsets Suroto and Supriyadi's extended family is the attitude of the government which has always left rumors of Supriyadi's life a mystery.

"The Japanese, who are said to be barbaric, after the war are still looking for and collecting the bones of their fighters on the islands of Indonesia. Lha, we, who are said to be a religious nation, appreciate the merit of heroes, why does this continue to be ignored. Why does it continue to be covered up," said Suroto, quoted by Detik. 16 August 2018 edition.

The unclear presence of Supriyadi made the TKR leaders uneasy. Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo - previously summoned by Vice President Mohammad Hatta and given the mandate as TKR general staff - then coordinated with the interim official of the Minister of People's Security, Muhammad Soeljoeadikoesumo. They formed four commandments in Java and Sumatra.

West Java Commandement I was led by General Major Didi Kartasasmita. Commandement II in Central Java is led by General Major Suratman. East Java Commandement III is under the leadership of General Major Muhammad, and Komandemen IV Sumatra is led by General Major Suharjo Harjowardoyo.

In addition to choosing four commanders, Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo also chose Yogyakarta as the TKR High Headquarters. Initially, it was in the building that is now the Inna Garuda Hotel, then it was moved to the building which is now the Yogyakarta Army Museum. Furthermore, to follow up on TKR's pressure to hasten the election of army leaders, Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo, with the permission of the central government, took the initiative to gather all the commanders, division commanders and TKR regiments and held a large meeting. So the People's Security Army Conference was born at the Army Headquarters in Yogyakarta on November 12, 1945.

Lieutenant General Urip Sumoharjo invited the leaders of the Javanese and Sumatran TKR, as well as regimental and divisional commanders to Yogyakarta to attend the TKR Conference. On 12 November, the TKR Conference was held although the numbers were not complete. East Java, for example, where some TKR officials did not come because they were still busy fighting against AFNEI (Allied Forces Netherlands East Indies) soldiers in the battle of Surabaya on November 10, 1945.

For the Sumatra region, not all TKR officials could attend because they were on guard for a war like in Surabaya. It turns out that vigilance is right. From October 1945 to 10 December 1946 the Battle of the Medan Area took place, a battle that took longer than in Surabaya. Due to these conditions, the six divisions from Sumatra were represented by one officer, namely Colonel Mohammad Noeh.

Meanwhile, other regions were not involved because they were still Dutch territory. As told by Military History Observer, Sarif Idris. "East Indonesia and Kalimantan at that time were still under the command of the Allied Forces which were then handed over to the Dutch. Those belonging to the Republic of Indonesia, Java and Sumatra. That's why there will be aggression in 1947 and 1948 to seize Java and Sumatra, right?" Said Sarif when interviewed by VOI.

The name Sudirman

The incomplete presence of the TKR officials did not make the conference canceled. The TKR conference opens at 10.00 WIB. Also present were a number of figures, such as Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX, Sunan Pakubuwono XII, Mangkunegoro X and the temporary official of the Minister of People's Security Muhammad Seoljoadikoesumo.

Quoted from the book Guru Bangsa: a biography of Jenderal Sudirman by Sardiman AM, the atmosphere of the meeting heated up during the election for the TKR Commander candidate. The meeting was stopped for some time because of these conditions. At that time, the names of two figures who were deemed worthy of becoming TKR leaders, namely Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo and Colonel Sudirman. At that time Urip Sumohardjo was the Head of the TKR General Staff and received the support of former members of the KNIL. Meanwhile, Sudirman at that time served as Commander of Division V Banyumas, Central Java, supported by former PETA members.

After stopping for a while, the trial led by Lieutenant Colonel Holland Iskandar started again. To prevent the situation from heating up again, Holland Iskandar asked all participants to write down the names of the candidates for the TKR Commander on paper and then write them down on the blackboard. The result is eight names:

1. M. Nazir (KNIL Laut)

2. Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono IX (Nobility)

3. Wijoyo Suryokusumo

4. Urip Sumohardjo (TKR General Staff, ex-KNIL)

5. GPH Purwonegoro (Aristocratic)

6. Sudirman (Commander of Division V, ex-PETA)

7. Suryadi Suryadarma (Former KNIL Officer)

8. M. Pardi (Admiral of the TKR Laut)

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The selection is made directly. Each conference participant simply raises their hand as a form of support for the TKR Commander candidate mentioned by the election committee. Quoted from Warta Budaya Yogyakarta Culture Office, the election took place tough up to three rounds.

Two candidates were killed in the first round. Two other candidates were killed in the second round. In the third round there were four names of candidates, namely Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo, Suryadi Suryadarma and Colonel Sudirman. The final round of voting established Colonel Sudirman as the winner. Sudirman managed to get 22 votes. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General Urip was supported by 21 votes.

Colonel Sudirman was elected as the Commander of TKR at the age of 29 years. Still very young compared to other, more senior candidates. Apart from electing the TKR commander, the conference also appointed Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX as Minister of People's Security. In responding to the election results, Colonel Sudirman was surprised by the election results and offered to relinquish the position to Urip Sumohardjo.

This is in line with what military history observer Sarif Idri said. "Sudirman's attitude is somewhat uncomfortable with his victory. At first, Sudirman wanted to be elected, not voting. After all, Oerip is more experienced and senior. Only Sudirman loyalists urged him. Finally he agreed," said Sarif.

In the TKR conference at that time, in fact many of the participants were former PETA soldiers. These former PETA soldiers clearly doubt if they have to choose Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo, considering that since 1914 he has served as the Dutch army, namely the KNIL. Moreover, at that time the Dutch were fighting with the Indonesian side, so for them, it was safer to choose Colonel Sudirman, who had a background of former Japanese-made PETA soldiers.

Apart from that, Sarif Idris also added that the election of Colonel Sudirman at that time was also assisted by the support of Abdul Haris Nasution. "The election of Sudirman was also inseparable from the support of Nasution at that time with his loyalists. Initially Nasution just agreed with Oerip's appointment. But then because the majority of the votes were pro Sudirman, Nasution joined the most votes. If there is a clash, I am also sure Nasution and his loyalists joined Oerip's camp because factor of 'European upbringing' (both ex-KNIL earlier, "Sarif.

General Urip's generosity

The TKR conference remains complicated and tough despite the final decision. There are other obstacles to agreeing. This time it was the central government, such as Bung Karno, Bung Hatta and Bung Syahrir doubting Sudirman's capacity to become the TKR Commander. This is because Sudirman at that time had only been in the army for two years. Even though Indonesia's condition at that time was in a state of war against allies. As a result, it took more than a month to inaugurate Sudirman.

The reasons for the doubts of the central government also vary. Vice President Mohammad Hatta hopes that Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo will occupy the position of TKR Commander because he is considered more experienced and has high military education when he was in the Dutch army. Meanwhile, Sutan Syahrir is of the view that the appointment of ministers cannot be done through the TKR Conference because this is the authority of the central government. Moreover, Sutan Syahrir already has another candidate for the Minister of People's Security, namely Amir Syafruddin.

Meanwhile, Bung Karno summoned Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo regarding the decision of the TKR Conference. He did not mind the slight loss of one vote in that election. He also even convinced Bung Karno that although he had only briefly served in the army, Sudirman had qualities both as a soldier and as a leader.

Regarding Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo's attitude, Safir Idris said, "If Oerip was not ex-KNIL, he won (in the TKR Conference). Oerip is not the type of person who is ambitious, if he wants, he can clash between supporters. . "

It was a long deadline since the TKR Conference on 12 November 1945, then on 18 December 1945 President Sukarno appointed Colonel Sudirman as Commander of the TKR in Yogyakarta. Of course this process could be carried out after Bung Karno succeeded in convincing Bung Hatta and Bung Syahrir to accept the results of the TKR Conference which established Sudirman as the TKR Commander. Except for the position of Minister of People's Security, it was not agreed to assign Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX, which was entrusted to Amir Sjarifuddin. It was only later on 15 July 1948 that Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono IX became the Minister of Defense in the Hatta Cabinet. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General Urip Sumohardjo continues to fill the position of TKR General Staff.

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