Every year, as October approaches, a familiar wave of retrospective content washes over us about the history of the G30S (the September 30th Movement). Yet public opinion remains starkly divided. On one side are those who unquestioningly accept the official historical narrative presented by the government of the time—identifying the PKI (Indonesian Communist Party) as the sole mastermind.
On the other side are those who recognizing the absolute necessity of analyzing multiple sources to uncover the underlying threads of historical truth. Finding the truth is rarely comfortable, but it is essential to expanding our view and reshaping our thinking.
To understand a historical event of this magnitude, I approach it much like investigating a robbery case: a reenactment from the perpetrator's perspective must be examined alongside the formal statement (BAP) from the victim, before the case is brought to court for thorough examination with the ultimate goal of achieving justice.
Driven by this search for clarity, I decided to go on a journey to The Plumbon Site (Situs Plumbon), a mass grave located in a teak forest area near Dusun Plumbon, Wonosari village (in the Ngaliyan/Tugu district), Semarang, Central Java. It stands as one of the most significant and rare memorial sites dedicated to the victims of the 1965–1966 anti-communist purges following the G30S events in Indonesia.
At that time, dozens of suspected members or affiliates of the PKI and affiliated mass organizations (such as Gerwani and PGRI) were brought to this remote forest and executed. At least 24 to 27 individuals were buried in two mass graves at the site.
The journey to Plumbon is quite challenging. Fortunately, I met residents along the way who provided directions and shared stories passed down through generations. According to residents, the location of the Plumbon mass grave was identified because, at the time, a local resident (an eyewitness) planted two castor bean saplings (bibit pohon jarak) right at the site.
In June 2015, following years of advocacy by civil rights groups, families, and local allies, a permanent gravestone was placed over the site with official permission. In a rare act of grassroots reconciliation, interfaith leaders, community members, and surviving relatives gathered under the trees to recite joint prayers and speak the names of the fallen aloud.
Recognized by CIPDH-UNESCO as an official site of memory, Plumbon was transformed from a hidden site of violence into a sanctuary for truth, dignity, and collective memory.
The Plumbon site is far from an isolated anomaly; it is just one of hundreds of mass grave locations. According to data from the Foundation for Research into Victims of the 1965–1966 Killings (YPKP 65), which was submitted to the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), there are at least 138 such mass grave sites scattered across various regions in Indonesia, primarily on the islands of Java and Bali. At least 500,000 to over 1 million people (accused of being members or sympathizers of the PKI, Gerwani, or other leftist groups) perished in the tragedy.
The stark visual and institutional contrast between a site like Plumbon and the state-sanctioned Pancasila Sakti Monument at Lubang Buaya highlights a deep cultural asymmetry.
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While it is entirely right to honor the high-ranking military officers who lost their lives in the G30S events, ordinary citizens (teachers, farmers, merchants) deserve equal dignity and respect for their humanity. Social hierarchy should not dictate the value of a human life, nor should it obscure deeper historical realities buried beneath official rhetoric. Or is there something deeper the government tried to bury? I beg to differ, though; that is a discussion for another time.
My search for the history of the G30S has fundamentally helped me introspect in how I analyze things. Objective inquiry does not mean taking the side of the government, defending political groups used as historical scapegoats, or echoing the interests of foreign superpowers. I simply want to find something close to the truth.
One thing I truly regret is that I never had the chance to 'interrogate' my grandfathers, who served within state institutions in the Air Force and the Army. Not to judge them or hold them accountable (as that is certainly not my place). Rather, it stems from a desire to understand their lived reality.
As much as Indonesian culture tries to blindly force respect and pride toward elders (especially those deemed to be 'higher up' in the social hierarchy, such as military personnel). I still retain the right to question or 'side-eye' the motives behind their life decisions. I can respect them as individuals without necessarily agreeing with everything they did. Serving an institution does not render anyone a flawless hero.
If it weren't clear enough, the G30S undeniably functioned as a 'global strategic operation', a blueprint famously documented in ‘The Jakarta Method’. Demonstrate how external superpowers aligned with internal interests during the Cold War era. There is no denying the heavy involvement of a superpower nation behind the scenes.
It seems true that everyone has a 'price' that can be negotiated. Look at what happened during the G30S, those in power and government were busy trading away their integrity to serve their own egos and familial interests, while the common people were reduced to collateral damage and anonymous statistics.
This is precisely why it is crucial to educate oneself, cultivating an independent framework of thought that remains unswayed by any external influence whatsoever.
I have learned that with many complex cases, the most effective starting point to analyze is to "follow the money/benefit" (to ask what or who benefits most from an occurrence). From there, we can begin to untangle the tangled strings of a case.
I can try to observe, analyze, and judge until my mind goes numb. But at the end of the day, I have had to accept that perhaps we are all just doing the best we can with the 'capacity' we possess.
There is one unchanging reality: government dependency is a trap. While my patriotism is unwavering, my faith in political leadership is non-existent. I hold an equal measure of skepticism for all administrations, spanning every chapter of our political history, from the ‘Orde Lama’ and ‘Orde Baru’ through the Reformasi era and onward.
"True sovereignty does not lie in state-sanctioned mythologies, but in our willingness to question the history we were taught, speak the forgotten names, and think for ourselves."
PS. Kendrick Lamar's Super Bowl Halftime Show.
Just like the intro said " ..and this is the GREAT American 'GAME’.."
