Kasman Singodimedjo

Kasman Singodimedjo (25 February 1904 – 25 October 1982) was an Indonesian nationalist, politician, and National Hero who served as the second Attorney General of Indonesia between November 1945 and May 1946, and as the first chairman of the Central Indonesian National Committee (KNIP) in 1945. Born near Purworejo to a Muslim family, Kasman was educated in colonial schools before enrolling at the STOVIA medical school and the Batavia Law School. Graduating from the latter, he worked as a teacher before joining the Japanese PETA militia during the Japanese occupation period. He then participated in the Preparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence, lobbying other Muslim leaders to compromise in favor of national unity. After the proclamation of Indonesian independence in August 1945, he served as chairman of KNIP for two months before joining Masyumi and being appointed attorney general in November. After the end of the revolution, Kasman became a legislator and participated in the Constitutional Assembly of Indonesia in the 1950s where he endorsed Islam as the basis of the Indonesian state. He was then arrested for supporting Masyumi leaders involved in the Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Indonesia and imprisoned, with another imprisonment in 1963 under charges of conspiracy against the state. After his release, he became a supporter of the Indonesian Muslims' Party and its successor the United Development Party. Shortly before his death in 1982, Kasman would take part in petitions criticizing Suharto's government. He was made a National Hero in 2018.