Amir Sjarifuddin

Amir Sjarifuddin was an Indonesian politician and journalist who served as the second prime minister of Indonesia from 1947 to 1948. He was a major leader of the left-wing during the Indonesian National Revolution, and he previously served as Minister of Information from 1945 to 1946 and Minister of Defense from 1945 to 1948. Amir was born into a Muslim Batak family in Medan, but converted to Christianity during his studies at Leiden University. He was active in various student organizations, such as Jong Java and Perhimpoenan Indonesia, and became a Marxist. He returned to Indonesia and worked as a lawyer and a journalist, and joined the Indonesian People's Movement (Gerindo), a left-wing political party. He was arrested by the Dutch colonial authorities in 1933, but was released after a few months. During the Japanese occupation, he was one of the few Indonesian politicians who resisted the Japanese, along with Sutan Sjahrir. After the proclamation of Indonesian independence in 1945, he became the Minister of Information in the first cabinet, and later the Minister of Defense. He was also a member of the delegation that negotiated with the Dutch over the status of Indonesia. In 1947, he became the prime minister, with the support of a coalition of parties. He faced several challenges, such as the Dutch military aggression, the regional rebellions, the economic crisis, and the political conflicts. He also signed the Renville Agreement, which was unpopular among many nationalists, as it conceded some territories to the Dutch. He resigned from his post in 1948, and joined the Socialist Party of Indonesia, which was aligned with the Indonesian Communist Party. He was involved in the Madiun Affair, an attempted coup by the communists, which was crushed by the republican army. He was captured and executed by the army in 1948, along with other communist leaders. He is regarded as a controversial figure in Indonesian history, as some view him as a traitor and a communist, while others view him as a patriot and a socialist.