Remembering Sukarno after collective amnesia<\/p>\n
M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
One of the greatest smear campaigns ever committed in the
\ncountry's modern history was the one that was waged against the
\ncountry's first president, Sukarno.<\/p>\n
For more than three decades after he was removed from power
\nfollowing an alleged coup attempt, the regime of president
\nSoeharto embarked on a massive campaign to erase Sukarno's name
\nfrom the history books and painted an otherwise dismal picture of
\nthe country's founding father.<\/p>\n
Imagine George Washington being written out of American
\nhistory and you would have some idea of the lengths successive
\ngovernments here went to discredit him.<\/p>\n
During the Soeharto era, Sukarno's contribution to nation
\nbuilding was rarely mentioned, and over time his name slowly
\nfaded from the country's collective consciousness.<\/p>\n
In general, a blackout on Sukarno left the country in the dark
\nover the work of the outspoken leader. Most school children
\nnowadays know him merely as the person who read the country's
\nDeclaration of Independence on Aug. 17, 1945, at the side of
\nMohammad Hatta, the country's first vice president.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, parents educated under the New Order curriculum
\ncan do little to help their children, as forgetting Sukarno was
\nalso part of their education.<\/p>\n
Although a ban was never officially slapped on books penned by
\nSukarno, not a single publishing house ever dared to publish his
\nbooks during the New Order regime and the country's younger
\ngeneration was stripped of the opportunity to learn about his
\nideas, or from his experiences.<\/p>\n
As a result, one of Sukarno's books Di Bawah Bendera Revolusi
\n(Under the Banner of Revolution) -- published for the last time
\nin 1965 -- became a collectible item and was one of the most
\nsought-after books during the New Order era, aside from the
\nbanned Buru Quartet by Pramoedya Ananta Toer.<\/p>\n
Whatever one's position on this admittedly controversial
\nfigure, there is no doubt that the founding member of the
\ncountry's Indonesian Nationalist Party (PNI), independence leader
\nand one of the authors of the nation's five principals, the
\nPancasila, is far too important a figure to be ignored in
\nIndonesian history.<\/p>\n
In an effort to bring Sukarno back into the country's
\nconsciousness and dispel the New Order's decades of
\ndisinformation, the Bung Karno Foundation (YBK), a political
\nJakarta-based organization set up by Sukarno's children, has
\nbegan a campaign to reintroduce the country's flamboyant founding
\nfather.<\/p>\n
Part of this campaign is the publication of nine-volume
\nillustrated biography of Sukarno, Seri Biografi Bung Karno,
\ntargeted at children.<\/p>\n
The book's publisher said the illustrated biography was
\ndesigned for children aged 12 years and above. "We believe that
\nthe pictures and the way the story was told will be more
\ninteresting to children rather than presenting (the narrative) as
\nan historical text," the publisher of the book, Zamzani, said.<\/p>\n
With limited resources at his disposal, Zamzani said a picture
\nbook was also more cost-effective than a graphic novel.<\/p>\n
"It took us four years to complete this series. How long would
\nit have took if we had decided to use a comic as our medium,
\nwhere we would have had to draw one sequence for one piece of
\ninformation," he said.<\/p>\n
The illustrated biography depicts Sukarno as a regular person,
\nstruggling for the freedom of a country he loved. "We shied away
\nfrom the controversial aspects of Sukarno's life," the book's
\nauthor, Sari Pusparini Soleh, said.<\/p>\n
Researching the book took a long time, Sari said. "To tell a
\nbalanced story I had to read dozens of books on Sukarno from all
\nparts of the political spectrum as my reference," she said.<\/p>\n
However, Sari said Soekarno: An Autobiography: As told to
\nCindy Adams, an uncritical tome written in 1965 where the former
\npresident told his life story to an American journalist, served
\nas her main reference. "People could say that what Soekarno told
\nCindy Adams did contradict the facts, but at least that was what
\ncame out from his mouth, meaning that it couldn't have be far
\nfrom the truth," Sari said.<\/p>\n
The books, which have been on bookstore shelves for the past
\nfour years, have won an award from the Indonesian Association of
\nBook Publishers (Ikapi).<\/p>\n
The public, however, has only given a lukewarm response to the
\nseries. Despite being available at an affordable low price, Rp
\n27,000 (US$2.6) a volume, only a small number of parents have
\nbought it.<\/p>\n
"There was a time when we only printed one or two runs per
\nyear," Zamzani said.<\/p>\n
YBK chairman Guruh Soekarnoputra, the son of Sukarno, said
\nthat the publication of the illustrated book was but one of many
\nevents held to celebrate Sukarno's 104th birthday this year.<\/p>\n
The YBK also initiated the re-issue of Di Bawah Bendera
\nRevolusi and Bung Karno Sang Arsitek (Soekarno the Architect) and
\nunveiled a monument to the president in Berastagi, North Sumatra.<\/p>\n
Guruh said the foundation had declared 2005 the Year of
\nSoekarno and had written to all government institutions,
\npolitical parties and the media asking them to observe it by
\nflying banners or running public service announcements
\ncommemorating the late Sukarno's 104th birthday, which would have
\nfallen on Juni 21.<\/p>\n
"However, so far we have learned that only one newspaper has
\nrun the ads, which we had to pay for," Guruh said.<\/p>",
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