Minister of Immigration and Corrections Visits Taruna Heroes Cemetery Ahead of 81st Independence Day
Minister of Immigration and Corrections (Imipas) Agus Andrianto paid his respects at the Taruna Heroes Cemetery (TMP) on Jalan Daan Mogot, Tangerang City, Banten. The pilgrimage and flower scattering were part of a series of activities ahead of the 81st anniversary of Indonesia’s independence.
“So we gathered together with families and the community to carry out a leisurely walk. Then we carried out cleaning at the cemetery, social service activities, and distributed social assistance to the community,” said Agus at the Immigration and Corrections Polytechnic Campus on Sunday (9/8/2026).
Agus expressed hope that the series of activities would enliven the commemoration of Indonesia’s Independence Day on 17 August. He wants the services of the heroes to continue to be remembered.
“This is part of the series of commemorations that we are carrying out. Hopefully this will become a spirit for us to be able to contribute actively and concretely to our families and to society, in order to enliven Independence Day,” he said.
The Taruna Heroes Cemetery visited is the final resting place of fighters who fell while defending independence. Among them are Major Daan Mogot, Sutopo, and Subianto Djojohadikusumo, the uncle of President Prabowo.
“Earlier (we visited the graves of) Mr Daan Mogot, and his family was there. Then Mr Subiyanto, Mr Subiyanto Djojohadikusumo and so on,” said Agus.
“These are young heroes who at that time defended the independence that had been proclaimed by our proclamators on 17 August. The incident (their deaths) occurred in 1946, which was a critical period, a transition period from before Indonesia existed, because before 17 August Indonesia did not yet exist,” he continued.
The manager of TMP Taruna, while accompanying Minister Agus, mentioned that the fighters buried at the site consisted of 3 officers and 34 cadets of the Tangerang military academy. The average age of the cadets who died was still in their teens.
“There were 34 cadets who died, including three officers. The officers were Major Daan Mogot, then Mr Sutopo, and another one, Mr Subianto Jojohadikusumo, who happens to be the uncle of Mr Prabowo (President Prabowo).
“But all those who fell were the same, namely cadets whose ages were only around 17 to 20 years old,” he added.
Dozens of fighters died when they attempted to disarm Japanese troops after independence. However, Japan chose to hand over their weapons to the Allied forces.
“They all fell in Lengkong Wetan Village, which occurred on 25 January 1946, in the context of the disarmament of Japanese forces. But they were not yet willing to surrender to Indonesia; they wanted to surrender to the Allies,” he said.