US Department of State, Airgram A-398 to U.S. Embassy Jakarta, Secret
National Security Archive
A secret 1965 State Department memo lists the PKI’s leadership and notes fabricated confessions, revealing how Washington tried to map a revolution that was being violently erased.
Source: US Department of State, Airgram A-398 to U.S. Embassy Jakarta, Secret Date: Dec 17, 1965 Archive: RG 84, Entry P 339, Jakarta Embassy Files, Box 12, Folder 9 PKI 1965 Collection: U.S. Embassy Tracked Indonesia Mass Murder 1965 Oct 17, 2017
Editorial Analysis
Original analysis by the DriftSeas editorial desk. The complete primary-source document, transcribed from the National Security Archive scan, appears in full below.
A Secret List in the Midst of Chaos
On 17 December 1965 the State Department’s Jakarta embassy sent Airgram A‑398 to Washington, a terse, classified packet that simply catalogues the Communist Party of Indonesia’s (PKI) leadership and, where possible, their fates after the September‑October 1965 upheaval. The memo was produced just weeks after the army’s brutal anti‑communist purge, at a moment when U.S. officials were scrambling to understand who had survived, who had been killed, and how reliable the flood of rumors from Jakarta really were. The document’s purpose was not diplomatic nicety but intelligence‑gathering: to give the ambassador and senior policymakers a vetted, if fragmentary, roster of names that could be cross‑checked against field reports, press clippings, and intercepted communications.
The 1965 Coup‑and‑Purge Context
Indonesia’s 1965 crisis began with the alleged “coup attempt” of 30 September, when a group of army officers killed six senior generals. The event was immediately blamed on the PKI, triggering a wave of extrajudicial killings that claimed anywhere from 500,000 to over a million lives. General Suharto’s rise to power was cemented by the army’s campaign to eradicate communist influence from every level of society. Within weeks, the PKI’s formal structures were dismantled, its newspaper shut down, and its members hunted.
The United States, fearing a left‑leaning Indonesia could align with the Soviet bloc, had long supported President Sukarno’s “guided democracy.” By late 1965 Washington was quietly encouraging the army’s anti‑communist drive, while also seeking to avoid diplomatic fallout from the mass murders. Airgram A‑398 reflects that duality: it is secret, yet it is also marked for “downgrade” after twelve years, indicating an expectation that the information would eventually become public knowledge rather than remain a permanent classified secret.
Who Is Named, and What Their Entries Reveal
The memo lists the PKI’s Politburo, Central Committee, and various commissions, distinguishing full members from candidate members. Most striking is the explicit note that many of the alleged confessions circulating in Jakarta press were fabricated—an observation underscored by the example of “Njono’s confession,” which mentions a Politburo composition that predates the May 1965 plenum. This admission signals that even U.S. diplomats were skeptical of the regime’s propaganda, aware that the army was manufacturing evidence to legitimize its purge.
The “whereabouts” section, though incomplete, already marks D. N. Aidit as “reported dead” and Lukman as “captured.” That the list stops short of confirming the status of others (Njoto, Sudisman, etc.) shows the chaotic information environment on the ground: rumors, secret arrests, and bodies disappearing into the jungle or being buried in mass graves. The inclusion of officials who were abroad—Jusuf Adjitorop, noted as in China since July 1964—highlights the diplomatic nuance; the U.S. needed to know which leaders might re‑emerge abroad to influence future Indonesian politics.
Why the Document Matters Today
Airgram A‑398 is more than a bureaucratic roster; it is a snapshot of the moment when the United States tried to map the human terrain of a revolution that had been violently erased. The memo’s candid acknowledgment of forged confessions contradicts the simplistic Cold‑War narrative that the U.S. merely backed a clean‑cut anti‑communist victory. Instead, it reveals a nuanced, on‑the‑ground assessment effort, a recognition that the “victors” were also producing false evidence to justify their actions.
Historians have long debated the extent of U.S. involvement in the 1965‑66 killings. Documents like this, released under the National Declassification Authority, provide concrete proof that Washington was monitoring the purge in real time, cataloguing victims and survivors, and presumably feeding that intelligence into policy decisions. The fact that the memo was slated for declassification after twelve years—rather than being forever sealed—suggests an institutional awareness that the episode would remain a contentious part of U.S. foreign‑policy history.
In the broader sweep of Indonesian history, the PKI’s annihilation reshaped the nation’s political landscape for the next three decades, ushering in Suharto’s New Order regime. The Airgram’s list of names, many of which later resurfaced in exile communities or were posthumously rehabilitated after 1998, serves as a primary source for tracing the long‑term diaspora of Indonesia’s leftist intelligentsia. For scholars, the memo offers a rare, contemporaneous ledger that can be cross‑referenced with survivor testimonies, Indonesian court records, and later truth‑and‑reconciliation initiatives.
Ultimately, Airgram A‑398 reminds us that intelligence products are not neutral snapshots; they are crafted amid uncertainty, propaganda, and political agendas. Its frank commentary on falsified documents and its painstaking effort to track a decimated leadership underscore the complexities of Cold‑War era interventions—complexities that continue to inform debates over accountability, historical memory, and the moral calculus of foreign policy.
[DECLASSIFIED Authority NND 67289]
[TBL 12 PKI]
This document consists of 6 pages. Copy 3 of 12 copies. Series A
Secret SECRET
A-398
SECSTATE WASHINGTON
INFO : BANGKOK, CINCPAC (for Polad), KUALA LUMPUR, MEDAN, SINGAPORE, SURABAJA
GP-3 - Downgrade each 12 yrs.; not auto- matically declassified
[FILE]
Amembassy DJAKARTA December 17, 1965
PKI Leadership List and Fate of PKI Leaders
The Embassy has received a number of reports concerning arrests of prominent PKI leaders although the evidence is often suspect. There is widespread falsification of documents such as alleged confessions, some of which can be easily detected and some not. An example of this is the alleged Njono confession wherein Njono, a PKI Politburo member, appears to be unaware of the composition of the Politburo. His alleged remarks on the composition of the Politburo are based on the Politburo as it existed prior to May, 1965 Central Committee plenum and fail to take into account the promotion of Peris Pardede to be a candidate member of that body or the transfer of Rewang from leadership of the Central Java PKI to the Central Committee Secretariat.
Enclosed is an unclassified list of the PKI leadership bodies as they existed after the May, 1965 plenum when the last changes were made. Also enclosed is a (secret) fragmentary compilation of information on the present whereabouts of PKI leaders based on the limited information available.
FOR THE AMBASSADOR:
Mary Vance Trent First Secretary of Embassy
Enclosures a/s
SECRET
POL:RMartens:efr 12/14/65 POL:MVTrent
UNCLASSIFIED Enclosure 1 A-398, Djakarta
POLITBURO
Full Members
- D. N. Aidit Chairman of CC
- M. H. Lukman 1st Deputy Chairman of CC
- Njoto 2nd Deputy Chairman of CC
- Sudisman Head of Secretariat
- Sakirman CC Economic Expert
- Njono Member of Secretariat
- Jusuf Adjitorop A Deputy Head of Secretariat in China since July 1964
- Rewang Member of Secretariat
Candidate Members
- Anwar Sanusi Member of Secretariat, PKI rep. in National Front
- Peris Pardede Deputy Head of Secretariat
CENTRAL COMMITTEE
Full Members
- Achmad Sunardi ?
- Jusuf Adjitorop (Politburo) A Deputy Head of Secretariat
- D. N. Aidit (Politburo) Chairman of CC
- Amar Hanafiah 1st Secy CDB, S. Kalimantan
- Anwar Kadir A Deputy Head of Secretariat
- Anwar Sanusi (Cand. Member of Secretariat, PKI rep. Politburo) in National Front
- Dahlan Rivai Member of Secretariat
- Djokosudjono Member of Secretariat (Head of Planning Bureau)
- A. Imron Secy CDB, S. Sumatra
- Ismail Bakri Secy CDB, West Java
- M. H. Lukman (Politburo) 1st Deputy Chairman of CC
- Muhamad Samikidin Secy CDB, Atjeh
- Djalaludin Jusuf Nasution Secy CDB, N. Sumatra
- Njono (Politburo) Member of Secretariat
- Njoto (Politburo) 2nd Deputy Chairman of CC
- Nungtjik Head of PKI parliamentary faction
- Nursuhud A Deputy Head of Secretariat
- Peris Pardede (Cand. A Deputy Head of Secretariat Politburo)
- Rewang (Politburo) Member of Secretariat
- Ruslan Kamaludin Member of Secretariat
UNCLASSIFIED
DECLASSIFIED -3- Enclosure to A A-393, Djakarta
CENTRAL COMMITTEE I (Cont.)
- Sakirman (Politburo) CC Economic Expert
- Sidartojo Member of Secretariat
- Siswojo Member of Secretary (Head of Education Dept.)
- Sajid Ahmad Sofjan Secy CDB, West Kalimantan
- Sudisman (Politburo) Head of Secretariat
- Sudojo Member daily council CDB, Djakarta Raya
- Nj. Suharti Chairman, Gerwani and Head of Women's Dept. of Secretariat
- Sundjono Member of Secretariat
- Karel Supit Member of Secretariat (Head of Foreign Dept.)
- Suwardiningsih Semi-retired
- Tjoa Tek Tjun ?
- Tjugito Member of Secretariat
- Wikana Ranking PKI Representative in '45 Generation
- M. Zaelani Member of Secretariat
- Adenan Rachman Secy, CDB Djambi
- Abdullah Alihamy Secy, CDB Riau
- Sajid Fachrul Baraqbah Secy, CDB East Kalimantan
- Banda Marehap Head, Dept. of Culture, C: PKI
- Kutu Kandel Secy, CDB Bali
- Umar Lestelahu Secy, CDB Maluku
- Aminuddin Muchlis Secy, CDB South Sulawesi
- Muslimin Jasin Secy, CDB West Nusantenggara
- Tobias Paulinus Rissi Secy, CDB East Nusantenggara
- Sukatno Secy General, Pemuda Rakjat and probably head of Youth Dept. of Secretariat
- Messer Tanggap Pelong Secy, CDB Central Kalimantan
- M. A. Pane Secy, CDB Lampung
- Rachmat Secy, CDB West Sumatra
- Sidik Kertapati A Deputy Head of BTI and probably head of Agriculture Dept. of Secretariat
- J. Suak Secy, CDB North Sulawesi
- Suwandi Secy, CDB East Java
Candidate Members
- Anwar Nasution Dep. Secy Gen., Pemuda Rakjat
- Nj. Setiati Surasto 4th Deputy Chairman, SOBBI
- Nj. Sundari Ar
- Thaib Adamy Deputy Secy, CDB Atjeh
- Nj. Umi Sardjono General Chairman, Gerwani
UNCLASSIFIED
UNCLASSIFIED -3- Enclosure 1 A-398, Djakarta
CENTRAL CONTROL COMMISSION
- Peris Pardede (Chairman) Also Member of Secretariat & CC
- Dahono
- Mangkudun Sati
- Suhaemi Rachman
- Towidjan
- Surja
CENTRAL VERIFICATION COMMISSION
- Sujono Pradigdo (Chairman)
- Tambunan L. D. (Deputy Chairman)
- Laurens Darman (Deputy Chairman)
- Busjari Latif
- Djodo Wirosubroto
- Ngadiman Hardjocuhroto
- Singgih Tirtosuhroto
- Supeno
- Tan Ling Dji
- Ir. Thajeb Thaher
- Djamhari
- Nj. Mudjiatun
- Drs. J. Piry
SECRETARIAT CC-PKI*
- Sudisman (Head)
- Jusuf Adjitorop (Deputy Head)
- Anwar Kadir (Deputy Head)
- Peris Pardede (Deputy Head)
- Nursuhud (Deputy Head)
- Anwar Sanusi (National Front)
- Djokosudjono (Plans)
- Siswojo (Education)
- Karel Supit (Foreign Countries)
- M. Zaelani
- Njono
- Tjugito
- Ruslan Kamaludin
- Dahlan Rivai
- Rewang
- Sundjono
- Sidartojo
*Below are persons who have been named in the press as "Members of the Secretariat." The heads of several Secretariat Departments who have not been named as "Members of the Secretariat" are not included here.
Enclosure 2 A-398, Djakarta
SECRET
REPORTS ON WHEREABOUTS OF PKI CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEMBERS AS OF DECEMBER 10
D. N. Aidit Reported dead.
Njoto " "
Lukman " captured.
Sudisman Conflicting reports. Most recent are that he is loose.
Sakirman Reported arrested.
Njono Known to be arrested and in a Djakarta prison.
Rewang Believed to be arrested, but only on basis of report that all Politburo members were arrested except Sudisman and Adjitorop.
Anwar Sanusi Believed to be arrested on same basis as Rewang.
Peris Pardede Captured in North Sumatra accord- ing to Army press release.
Djalaludin Jusuf Nasution Same as Pardede.
Dahlan Rivai Reported arrested by press.
Umar Hanafiah Believed to be arrested on basis of press reports which did not say he was in custody but im- plied it.
Utut Kandel Reported arrested by reliable source.
Umar Lesteloku Reported to have made anti-PKI statements by the press imply- ing that he was under Army con- trol.
SECRET
SECRET Enclosure 2 A-290, Djakarta
-2-
Nursuhud Reported by press to be loose in mountains of West Sumatra.
Thaher Thajeb Identified by reliable source as in prison.
Tobias P. Rissi Arrested according to Sokoguru Revolusi of November 17, 1965.
Jantje Suak Arrested according to Antara of December 1, 1965.
SECRET
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