Biography of late Marshal Roesmin launched<\/p>\n
A. Junaidi, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The biography of a former Air Force commander, the late Marshall
\nRoesmin Nurjadin, was launched here on Saturday, telling his
\nversion of what happened around the time of the 1965 alleged coup
\nthat has since been blamed on the now-defunct Indonesian
\nCommunist Party (PKI).<\/p>\n
The 437-page biography says Roesmin was appointed as the new
\nAir Force chief at 36 years of age to replace Rear Marshal Sri
\nMoeljono Herlambang amid suspicions that officers from the Air
\nForce had played a role in the coup attempt.<\/p>\n
Rusmin's appointment was due to what the book said was his
\nposition as a \"neutral\" young officer who could be accepted by
\nthe military forces, particularly the Army.<\/p>\n
The biography said Roesmin had close relationships with some
\nhigh-ranking Army officers, including Gen. A.H. Nasution and Maj.
\nGen. Soeharto.<\/p>\n
Soeharto, who replaced President Sukarno in 1966, installed
\nRoesmin as the Indonesian ambassador to the United Kingdom in
\n1970 and to the United States in 1974, owing to his
\n\"achievements\" in reorganizing the Air Force.<\/p>\n
The Soeharto government blamed the alleged coup attempt on the
\noutlawed PKI. It was one of the bloodiest tragedies in
\nIndonesia's long history of tragedies. Hundreds of thousands of
\nsuspected PKI supporters were slaughtered or tortured to death
\nwithout any form of due process in court.<\/p>\n
Known as Indonesia's first jet fighter pilot, Roesmin later
\nserved as minister of transportation for two-five-year terms from
\n1978 to 1988 in the Soeharto Cabinet.<\/p>\n
Having been a jet fighter pilot, Roesmin was involved in
\nseveral operations against separatist movements, including the
\nIndonesian Republic Revolutionary Administration (PRRI) in many
\nareas across Sumatra in 1958.<\/p>\n
The book was ghost-written by a team led by senior journalist
\nImran Hasibuan on the basis of interviews with Roesmin's wife,
\nSoejati, and close friends, as well as material from other books.<\/p>\n
Roesmin was born on May 31, 1930, and is survived by his wife,
\ntwo sons and one daughter. He died on Sept. 8, 1994 while playing
\ngolf in Bandung, West Java.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/biography-of-late-marshal-roesmin-launched-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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