Description
The book was based on the real life story of Lt.Col. Heru Atmodjo. He held the position as Assistant Director of Indonesian Air Force Intelligence Production when he was incarcerated for fifteen years without proper legal procedures for a political crime he did not commit following the 1965 Movement in Indonesia that saw the massacre of over a million innocent people.
The book covered his childhood in a mountainous village in East Java. His military life started when he became a member of TRIP Student Soldiers of the Republic of Indonesia, involved in guerrilla warfare fighting for National Independence in East Java. To fulfil his lifelong ambition he trained as a fighter pilot in the Indonesian Air Force, and subsequently became a trainer in the air force.
In 1961 he was sent to the US to attend a one year course on Air, Photo & Radar Intelligence at Sheppard Air Force Base, Wichita Fall Texas. He had the prospect of becoming Chief of the Air Force when the abortive 1965 purge put a tragic end to his career.
He was unjustly implicated and sentenced to life imprisonment by the Suharto military regime that took over power from the nationalist government of Sukarno. He was released after 15 years in detention in 1980 following the intervention of International Human Rights.
The book described the courage of pro Sukarno senior military personnel in facing their final hours of execution by firing. It also gave hour by hour detailed testimony on the days before and after the 1965 purge which clearly proved President Sukarno and the Indonesia Air Force were not involved in the catastrophic movement.
The book is a first-hand life witness to the intrigues, deceit and betrayal within the Indonesian army as well as the inner circle of Indonesian Air Force during the chaotic period that led to Heru’s arrest.
