Wilopo

Wilopo (21 October 1909 – 20 January 1981) was an Indonesian statesman, politician, and lawyer who held various roles in government during his career, most notably as the prime minister of Indonesia from 1952 to 1953. He later served as the speaker of the Constitutional Assembly from 1956 to 1959 and the chair of the Supreme Advisory Council from 1968 to 1978. He also held several ministerial offices. Since his death, there have been proposals to name him as a national hero. Born into a Javanese family, Wilopo studied law at the Rechts Hogeschool in Batavia (now Jakarta) and was involved in the Indonesian nationalist movement. He became an official in the Japanese occupation government during World War II. Following the proclamation of Indonesian independence in 1945, Wilopo joined the new Indonesian government, becoming secretary-general of the ministry of labour and helping re-establish the Indonesian National Party (PNI). During the Indonesian National Revolution, Wilopo was appointed junior minister of labour and was captured by the Dutch following an offensive into Indonesian territory in 1948. Upon his release, Wilopo participated in the Round Table Conference that recognised the sovereignty of Indonesia. He then served as minister of labour in the United States of Indonesia Cabinet and as minister of economic affairs in the Soekiman Cabinet. Following a cabinet crisis, Wilopo was appointed as cabinet formateur in March 1952. He opted to form a coalition government consisting of the PNI, the Masyumi Party, and several smaller parties, resulting in the establishment of a "business cabinet" composed of Western-educated technocrats. During his premiership, Wilopo and his government was faced with a political realignment—as the Nahdlatul Ulama seceded from the Masyumi while the Indonesian Communist Party started supporting the PNI and President Sukarno—as well as a financial crisis, caused by a collapse in commodity...