Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
(3) Indonesia: Comparision
– President Sukarno and President Suharto
Enquiry
question
In regard to influence on the transformation and modernisation of Indonesia, compare
Content
Related to the History curriculum (S4-6)
Learning
Objectives
and contrast those of President Sukarno and President?
Theme-based: Comparative studies
Knowledge:  Effects of the governance of President Sukarno and President
Suharto
Skills:
 To compare and analyse
 To evaluate by considering the positive and negative sides of history
Attitude:
 To show impartiality in making evaluation
Teaching flow:
Teachers may select or modify the activities in this teaching plan so as to suit the learning needs of
their students.
Items
A
Format
Introduction  Think-pair-share
Learning Objectives
 To arouse interest;
 To activate prior
Content

Students’ opinions on
political leaders

Lyrics of the national
anthem

Policies and impact of
both presidents

impact of Sukarno
Policies and
significance of both
and Suharto
presidents
knowledge;
B
Activity 1
 Worksheet
 To understand the
national dream of
 Think-pair-share
Indonesia at the
time of
independence;
C
Activity 2
 Watch
 To know and
documentary
D
E
F
Activity 3
Activity 4
Extended
Activity
analyse the
governance of both
 Worksheet
presidents
 Think-pair-share
 Forum
 To compare the
 Note-taking
 To summarize the
exercise
impact of both
presidents
 Homework

Different approaches to
the nation building of
Indonesia

performance of both
Strengths and
weaknesses of both
presidents
presidents
 To compare the
1
Teachers’
Reference
Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
Note

Self-motivated students may do Activity 2 and 3 at home as pre-lesson activities
and then present their work in class.
Fact sheet about the 4 Presidents (Appendix A) and a concept map (Appendix B)
are provided at the end of this file.

A. Introduction
Step 1
Suggest a president / national leader who has great influence on the transformation
and modernisation of his/her own country in the 20th century. Why do you think so?
Explain to your partner.
Step 2
Teacher briefly introduce the colonial period and the problems of Indonesia after its
independence.
Brief notes for teachers:
Early 16th century
The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive at Indonesia.
They tried to dominate the production of spices and to spread
Christianity.
Early 17th century
The Dutch occupied West Java and found present-day Jakarta.
Early 20th century
The Dutch established direct control over the territories which
would become the boundaries of the modern Indonesian state.
Inter-war period
(1919-1939)
The Dutch strongly repressed all native people’s requests for
change, and thus stimulated the growth of independence movement.
Sukarno, a socialist, was one of the nationalist revolutionary
leaders.
1940
The Japanese invaded and occupied Indonesia.
1942
Sukarno accepted Japan's offer to rally the public in support of the
Japanese war effort.
August 1945
2 days after Japanese surrender, Sukarno proclaimed the
independence of Indonesia. Soon bitter armed and diplomatic
struggles started between the Dutch and Indonesians.
1949
The Netherlands officially recognised Indonesian sovereignty
1950
Sukarno proclaimed the beginning of the Republic of Indonesia.[ He
was a romantic revolutionary. Under his increasingly authoritarian
rule, Indonesia moved on a course of stormy nationalism. The
economy continued to deteriorate.
Mid-1960s
Severe poverty and hunger were widespread.
2
Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
B.
Activity 1: What was the Indonesian national dream?
Step 1
 Study part of the national anthem of Indonesia and underline the words which
show the ways that the Indonesians would like their country to be.
 Discuss with classmates sitting next to you, and identify the main features of the
Indonesian national dream.
Note
 Students may listen to the anthem while reading the lyrics.
 Students may watch the relevant part of the documentary (time location 02:53) and
then discuss the messages they received.
 Keywords reflecting the national goal during the period of independence are
underlined for teachers’ reference in the text below.
Indonesia Raya
(Approximate translation)
REFRAIN
Third stanza
Great Indonesia, independent & sovereign!
My land, my country which I love
Great Indonesia, independent & sovereign!
Long live Great Indonesia!
Great Indonesia, independent & sovereign!
My land, my country which I love
Great Indonesia, independent & sovereign!
Long live Great Indonesia!
Indonesia, a sacred land
Our victorious land
Right there, I stand
To guard the pure motherland
Indonesia, a radiant land
A land which I adore
Let us pledge
"Indonesia is eternal!"
Safe may its people, safe may its children
Its islands, its seas, entirely
The state progresses, its scouts advance
For the Great Indonesia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesia_Raya#Lyrics (as at 23.1.2011, 17:25)
3
Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
C.
Activity 2: The Governance of Sukarno and Suharto
Step 1
1. Sukarno (1945-67) (time location 3:20-7:07) and Suharto (1967-98) (time
location 7:07-14:29) were the first two Presidents of Indonesia. Watch the
documentary and put a ‘’ in the correct boxes of Table (1) and Table (2) below
to identify their policies and impact on the development of Indonesia.
Note  Pauses can be made after showing one regime to check answers.
 Instead of using Table (1) and (2), advance learners may be challenged to jot notes
by themselves with Table (3). They may also discuss the aims and historical
circumstances of the policies.
 This task can be skipped if students are familiar with the topic “Indonesia after
Independence” which is included in this learning & teaching resources package
(Topic 2).
Table (1)
Comparison: Policies of President Sukarno & President Suharto
Political
policies





Economic
policies



Social
policies

Sukarno
Suharto
(03:17-07:03)
(07:04-14:27)
He led the struggle for independence and became
the first President.
He tried to adopt some democratic political
measures.
He centralized political power and strengthened the
military.
He outlawed the communist party and imprisoned
communist members.
He adopted anti-Chinese foreign policy.

He followed a socialist path, nationalized domestic
enterprises, confiscated foreign assets.
He enforced 5-year plans, developed infrastructure,
industry and agriculture, and exported natural
resources.
He highly favoured policies to attract foreign
investment;
He adopted anti-Chinese domestic policy e.g.
banning the use of Chinese language, arrests, etc

4








Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
Table (2)
Comparison: Merits & Demerits of the policies
Successes
Political
policies
Socioeconomic
policies
Suharto
(03:17-07:03)
(07:04-14:27)
Independence of the country

Unity and stability of the country


Largest economy in the Southeast Asian region, rise
in per capita GDP,
Social order maintained and fall in population living
under the poverty line
Failures
Political
policies
Socioeconomic
policies
Sukarno

Sukarno
Suharto
(03:17-07:03)
(07:04-14:27)

Political persecution and unfair imprisonment

Inadequate food, water and social services
Corruption between the army and the enterprises

Serious foreign debt leading to inflation, bankruptcy,
unemployment
Anti-Chinese incidents, anti-government
demonstration

Table (3)
Comparison: Policies of President Sukarno & President Suharto
Sukarno (03:17-07:07)
Suharto (07:07-14:27)
Political
policies
Economic
policies
Social
policies
5

Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
D.
Step 1
Note
Activity 3: Forum – The Governance of Sukarno and Suharto
Select one aspect of the development of Indonesia (political or socio-economic) and
complete the following tasks with your group members.
(i) Compare the domestic policies of Sukarno and those of Suharto.
(ii) Discuss whose policies you would support with reference to the results of the
policies and the ‘Indonesian national dream’.
(iii) Discuss which President has stronger influence on the modernization and
transformation of Indonesia, considering both the positive and negative effects.
(iv) Sum up the views among your group mates, and present the summary in the
class.
(v) Jot notes while you listen to your classmates in group discussion and forum.
(vi) Adjust and conclude your view in 2-4 lines after the forum.


E.
Activity 4: Note-taking exercise
Concluding
notes
F.
Note
1
2
Instructing students to jot down concluding notes offers them a good opportunity
to practice skills of note-taking.
For more motivated students, they may also discuss the following:
(i) Suggest the priority for the development of a country (e.g. stability,
prosperity and individual freedom), and explain your answer.
(ii) Predict the possible problems created by the priority you suggested and
think about the ways to tackle the problems.
President Sukarno and President Suharto adopted different approaches to the
building of Indonesia. There are merits and demerits in their governance. Both
of them played an important and unique role in the modernization and
transformation of Indonesia.
Extended activity
Students may attempt one or both of the following activities.
Imagine you are either Sukarno or Suharto, looking back to the development of
Indonesia in the second half of the 20th century, name one of your policies that you
would like to have changed. Explain your answer.
Taking more information from the textbook and 1-2 reference books, write an essay to
evaluate (or compare) the significance of either Sukarno or Suharto (or both) in the
political and socio-economic modernisation of Indonesia.
6
Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
Appendix A
Fact sheet of Indonesian Presidents (1945-2001)
Sukarno (1945-67)
Before Japanese occupation of Indonesia

Was born in 1901,

Studied civil engineering,

Knew different languages (Dutch, German, English,
French, Arabic and Japanese),

Was the leader of a pro-independence party in 1927, and

Was arrested several times by the Dutch colonial authority
in the 1920s-30s.
After Japanese occupation of Indonesia

Cooperated with the Japanese to defeat the Dutch,

Declared the independence of Indonesia after Japan’s surrender,

Became the first President of Indonesia in 1945,

Struggled against the Dutch and internal enemies for power (1945-1957),

Announced the “guided democracy”* in 1957 with increasing dependence on the military,

Wanted to unite the Southeast Asian and African countries, formed the ASEAN,

Fell from power after the anti-communist purge led by the military and the students’
demonstration in 1966, and

Was arrested and remained under house arrest until his death in 1970.
* Guided democracy is a term for a democratic government with increased autocracy. While
following basic democratic principles there can be minor deviations towards
authoritarianism.
Suharto (1967-98)
Before independence

Was born in 1921, and

Served in Indonesian security forces during the Japanese
occupation,
After independence

Joined the Indonesian army and rose to the rank of Major
General,





Led an anti-communist purge to overthrow Sukarno,
Was appointed Acting President in 1967 and President in 1968,
Was able to maintain stability and improve the socio-economic conditions of Indonesia,
Fell from power in 1998 due to people’s discontent about his dictatorship, serious
corruption and poor economic conditions after the financial turmoil in 1997, and
Died in 2008.
7
Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
Habibie (1998-99)







Was born in 1936,
Was trained as an engineer in Germany and became a
director of a large aerospace company,
Returned to Indonesia and served as the Minister of
Technology and Research in Suharto’s cabinet (1978-98),
Was elected as Vice President in March 1998,
Replaced Suharto as the President in May 1998 and led a
transitional government,
Reformed the election system to introduce democracy, and
Withdrew from the presidential election after the rejection of his accountability speech* by
the People’s Consultative Assembly.
* The accountability speech was a report of what he had achieved during his Presidency.
Wahid (1999-2001)
-





Was born in 1940,
Received tertiary education in Egypt, Iraq and the
Netherlands and studied different subjects such as Islamic
and Arabic Studies,
Went to France and Germany before returning to Indonesia
in 1971,
Became a famous social commentator and a university
lecturer in the 1970s,
Joined a political party and legislative elections in the 1980s-90s,
Was elected President in 1999,
Was famous for his religious toleration and moderate politics,
Was removed in 2001 due to unproved allegations of corruption and incompetence, and
Died in 2009 due to poor health.
References:
1.
Anwar, D. (1994) Indonesia in ASEAN: foreign policy and regionalism New York: St Martin’s Press
2.
Church, P. (2003) A Short History of South-east Asia Singapore: John Wiley & Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd
3.
Crouch, H. (2007) The Army and Politics in Indonesia Jarkata: Equinox Publishing
4.
Temple, J. (2001) ‘Growing into trouble: Indonesia after 1966’ Discussion Paper for “Analytical Country
Studies on Growth” organized by D. Rodrik, Center for International Development, Harvard, April, 2001.
5.
Indonesia Pusaka: http://www.indonesia-pusaka.com/2200sukarno.htm
6.
Suharto: http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/people/s/_suharto/index.html
7.
Profile: President BJ Harbibie: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/events/indonesia/profiles/98092.stm
8.
Former Indonesian President Wahid dies: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8434989.stm
8
Indonesia: Comparison – Presidents / Teachers’ Reference
Appendix B
Concept Map
(for studying the modernization and transformation of Indonesia in the 20th century)
Background
Capital city Jakarta
information
Over 17,500 islands lying between the Asian and
Geography
Australian continents
Society
The world’s most populated nation with people of a
great variety of ethnic origins
Independence
movement
Problems after
independence
Transformation
after the
independence
Religion
Islam & others
Reasons
Internal factors
Refer to textbook.
External factors
Refer to textbook.
Process
Military confrontation
Refer to textbook.
Political
Instability, military rule
Economic
Backward
Social
Wealth disparity, serious corruption, social unrests
Political
Guided democracy  military rule  democracy
Economic
Socialist planned economy  capitalist path, rapid
economic growth  capitalist system
Social
Great poverty  anti-Chinese feelings, wealth disparity
 ethnic harmony, rising living standard
Diplomatic
Anti-western, pro-communist attitude 
anti-communist, pro-western  cooperative policy
Note
Shaded areas – information given in the documentary
End
9