Pancasila Youth

[[File:Pemuda-Pancasila.png|thumb|right|165px|The seal of Pemuda Pancasila]]
{{politics}}
{{cquote|We have [[Authoritarianism|too much democracy]]. It's chaos. What is this 'democracy?' [[Good old days|Things were better under the military dictatorship]]. Better economy. More security.|||PP commander Yapto Soerjosoemarno}}
{{cquote|Bandits, rotten, motherfuckers, gangsters, basically everything bad.|||An Indonesian victim's view of Pancasila Youth<ref name="article1"/>{{rp|46}}}}

'''Pancasila Youth''' (''Pemuda Pancasila'', PP){{efn|'Pancasila' is pronounced "pantʃaˈsila" (roughly, 'panCHAsila').}} is a [[nationalism|nationalist]] paramilitary organization/[[organized crime]] group masquerading as a part of civil society, based in Medan, North Sumatra Province, [[Indonesia]]. Founded in 1959, PP has had a long history of ties with [[right-wing]] nationalist politicians and military generals. On a slow day, PP is a group of ''preman'' (street hoodlums) who do what typical organized crime groups do, including extortion, debt-collecting, and parking lot inspections. However, PP also ideologically claims to stand up for the Indonesian state [[philosophy]] of ''{{wpl|Pancasila (politics)|Pancasila}}'', and carry out political violence against the perceived enemies of the state. PP is perhaps most well known as one of the perpetrators of the {{wpl|Indonesian mass killings of 1965–66}} targeting the perceived members of the [[communism|Communist Party of Indonesia]].<ref group=note>PP has become internationally known thanks to 2012 critically acclaimed documentary-film ''{{wpl|The Act of Killing}}'' directed by Joshua Oppenheimer. Seriously, this is a must-see film.</ref><ref group=note>PP is not the only major socio-political organization participated in the killing, however. While PP played a significant role in the [[genocide]] that occurred in the North Sumatra region, each other region had its respective organizations that led the killing. In the provinces of East Java and Central Java, the youth wing of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the biggest Muslim organization in Indonesia, played an active role in the genocide. In Bali, the youth wing of the Indonesian Nationalist Party (PNI), the ruling party, took a part in the slaughter.</ref> 

==History==
PP was formed after 1959 with the help of nationalist military generals, especially the general {{wpl|Abdul Haris Nasution||,}} who was frightened by the increasing influence of communism in post-independent Indonesia. It is ironic that PP took its name from the national ideals of ''Pancasila'' which is consisted of five principles: 
#Belief in the Almighty God
#A just and civilised humanity
#The unity of Indonesia
#Citizens, led by collective wisdom in representation
#Social equity for all the peoples of Indonesia

As seen above, the philosophy of ''Pancasila'' is a curious mix of [[monotheism]],{{efn|Some forms of polytheism were legalized in 1962 under Sukarno, whose mother was a Balinese Hindu. Balinese Hinduism is legally considered monotheistic, however.<ref>{{wpa|Hinduism in Indonesia}}</ref>}} [[humanism]], [[nationalism]], [[democracy]], and [[social democracy]]. However, {{wpl|Sukarno||,}} the first president of Indonesia and the articulator of the philosophy, became progressively more sympathetic to the [[Eastern Bloc]], espousing pro-communist, anti-[[Western world|Western]], isolationist ideas.<ref group=note>Sukarno went complete lunatic in the final years of his presidency, ordering the withdrawal from the [[UN]] and the half-assed invasion into [[Malaysia]] ({{wpl|Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation|''Konfrontasi''}}).</ref> Some military generals began to resist his presidency and formed socio-political organizations to foment social distrust against the Indonesian Community Party (PKI) and Sukarno government. PP was one of them and its adoption of ''Pancasila'' served as a [[virtue signalling]] to the return to the foundational origin of Indonesia.<ref group=note>As such, it is legitimate to claim that ''Pancasila Youth'' has nothing to do with ''Pancasila''.</ref>

PP played an important role during the genocide in 1965-66, especially in the North Sumatran and Aceh regions.<ref group=note>North Sumatra was one of PKI's major strongholds along with East Java, Central Java and Bali.</ref> PP specifically targetted the youth wing of PKI known as Pemuda Rakyat (People's Youth), farmers' [[union]]s such as the Indonesian Farmers Front (BKI), as well as organizations representing the [[Chinese|ethnic-Chinese]] population. They also played a part in property theft in Jakarta, seizing buildings and lands owned by PKI members and ethnic-Chinese people. The army supplied them with weapons and provided tacit approval of their violence.<ref name="article1">[https://ecommons.cornell.edu/bitstream/handle/1813/54155/INDO_66_0_1106954794_45_73.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Pemuda Pancasila: The Last Loyalist Free Men of Suharto's Order?] by Loren Ryter (1998) ''Inodnesia'' 66:44-73. doi:10.2307/3351447.</ref>

[[File:YaptoJokowi2018.jpeg|thumb|left|200px|Yapto Soerjosoemarno and Joko Widodo, the president of Indonesia.]]

With the help of PP and its genocide, the previously second-biggest communist party in Asia had vanished, and the military general [[Suharto]] took over the presidency. During the era of the [[authoritarian]] Suharto regime, under the leadership of {{wpl|Yapto Soerjosoemarno||,}} PP grew into a powerful underworld connection with the Suharto regime and carried out political violence against their pro-[[Democracy|democratic]] oppositions. Under the instructions of {{wpl|Ali Murtopo||,}} a shadowy figure who served as the head of the intelligence agency, PP mobilized masses for counter-demonstrations against pro-democracy protests, provided private body-guards to the Suharto family, intimidated students and activists, and campaigned for the ruling party {{wpl|Golkar}}.<ref name="article1"/>

It was also during this time that PP began consolidating the gangland of North Sumatra. At one point, virtually all the movie theaters in Medan was controlled by ''preman'' and the revenue went straight into PP's hand. PP also owned [[gambling]] businesses, which is illegal in Indonesia as it is forbidden (''haram'') for [[Muslims]], and entertainment complexes, and flourished economically.<ref name="article1"/> Through their role of connecting the politics and underworld, their popular motto became "disliked but needed." With street politics intertwining with formal politics, any politicians in North Sumatra who want to succeed need to pay homage to PP. Even after the collapse of the Suharto regime and the democratization, the authority of PP has never weakened, and the regional parliament in Medan is dominated by politicians who have ties with PP.<ref>[https://jakartaglobe.id/news/banning-violent-groups-indonesia-lead-backlash-murdoch-universitys-ian-wilson/ Banning Violent Groups in Indonesia Could Lead to Backlash: Murdoch University's Ian Wilson] ''Jakarta Globe''. Retrieved May 20, 2020.</ref>

==See also==
* [[Islamic Defenders Front]] - their Islamist counterparts

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Crime]]
[[Category:Genocide]]
[[Category:Indonesia]]
[[Category:Nationalism]]
[[Category:Racism]]

Categories: Crime, Genocide, Indonesia, Nationalism, Racism