Madiun is a city in the western part of the province of
East Java Indonesia, an agricultural centre. It is the capital of the regency of the same name.
Madiun, located 169 km south west of
Surabaya, had a population of 190,823 in 1992. The town is an average of 63 meters above sea level and lies on the Madiun River, a tributary of the
Bengawan Solo River. It is surrounded by a number of mountains, including
Mount Wilis (2,169 m) to the east, to the south the Kapur Selatan range (500–1000 m) and to the west
Mount Lawu (3,285 m). Madiun has an average temperature of 20-35 degrees Celsius.
History
Madiun was the site of an uprising, the "
Madiun Affair", in 1948 by elements of the
Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI). After the signing of the
Renville Agreement that year, guerrilla units and militias under the influence of PKI were ordered to disband. In Madiun a group of PKI militia refused to disarm and were killed in September. The killings sparked a violent uprising. Army sources claimed that the PKI had announced the proclamation of the "Soviet Republic of Indonesia" on September 18 with
Musso as its president and
Amir Sjarifuddin as its prime minister.
The uprising was suppressed by republican troops. On September 30 Madiun was taken over by republican troops of the
Silwangi Division. Thousands of party cadres were killed and 36 000 were imprisoned. Amongst the executed were several leaders including Musso who was killed on October 31,...
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