Portal:Indonesia/BOTW/3, 2007

Sutomo (October 3, 1920 - October 7, 1981; also known as Bung Tomo) is best known for his role as an Indonesian military leader during the Indonesian War of Independence against the Netherlands. He played a central role in Battle of Surabaya when the British attacked the city in October and November 1945.

Bung Tomo in Surabaya

Sutomo was born in Kampung Blaran in central Surabaya to a clerk father, Kartawan Tjiptowidjojo, and mother of mixed Javanese, Sundanese and Madurese descent. he was forced to give up his education at the age of twelve because of family economic hardship during the Great Depression. Alongside menial jobs, he joined the Indonesian scouting organisation and at the age of seventeen as the second Eagle Scout; a rank achieved by only three Indonesians before the Japanese occupation during World War II.

He was chosen in 1944 as a member of the Japanese-sponsored Gerakan Rakya Baru from where he took on a leadership role in the Battle of Surabaya. Although it was lost to the Dutch's European allies, the battle served to galvanise Indonesian and international opinion in support of the independence cause. Sutomo spurred thousands of Indonesians to action with his distinctive, emotional speaking-style of his radio broadcasts. His "clear, burning eyes, that penetrating, slightly nasal voice, or that hair-raising oratorical style that second only to Sukarno's in its emotional power". (Frederick 1982)