Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo
Cipto Mangunkusumo or Tjipto Mangoenkoesoemo. He born at 4 March 1886 in Pecangakan, Ambarawa, Semarang and died 8 March 1943 in Batavia. He was a prominent Indonesian independence leader and Sukarno's political mentor. Together with Ernest Douwes Dekker and Soewardi Soerjaningrat he was one of the three founders of the influential Indische Party, a political party disseminating the idea of self-government of the Dutch East Indies. After the party was labeled subversive by colonial court of law in 1913, he and his fellow IP leaders were exiled to the Netherlands.
His childhood:
He is of Javanese noble descent
Cipto was born in Pecangan Village, Jepara, Semarang Residency on March 4 1888. He was the son of Mangunkusumo. Cipto's father was a Javanese nobleman who served as a teacher and administrative assistant at the Semarang City Council. Meanwhile, Cipto's mother is a woman descended from a landowner from Jepara.
As a child, Cipto and his siblings had the opportunity to go to school at STOVIA. When he was still at school, he was a person who was known to be honest, sharp-minded and diligent. There, he was known as someone who was firm in his actions and was one of those who dared to go against the flow.
His Achievements:
First, Cipto achievements is he found an organization that called Budi Utomo. Budi Utomo was formed on May 20 1908, Cipto welcomed the founding of this organization. This is because this organization is a form of indigenous awareness of their own identity. Even though he was chosen as Budi Utomo's manager, Cipto ultimately resigned from Budi Utomo.
Second, Cipto achievements is he founded Indische Partij. After resigning from Budi Utomo, Cipto then continued his work as a doctor in Solo. In the midst of his busy schedule, he also founded the Raden Ajeng Kartini Club organization. This organization operates in the social sector and cares about the welfare of the people. Then in 1912, he founded the Indische Partij together with Ernest Douwes Dekker and Soewardi Soerjaningrat.
So, Cipto and Douwes Dekker are very close friends. Even in 1912, Cipto moved to Bandung to be closer to his friend. He then became a member of the editorial board of the daily publication de Express and the magazine het Tijdschrift.
Third, Cipto founded a committee called the Bumi Putra Committee and he became the leader. The committee once published an article by Suwardi Suryaningrat entitled "If I Were a Dutchman". Cipto also wrote about his support for Suwardi to boycott Dutch independence celebrations.
So last, In 1910, the bubonic pandemic hit Malang and became rampant there. The bubonic pandemic outbreak coincided with a rise in racism that divided society based on skin color and origin. Therefore, European doctors in Batavia were reluctant to go to Malang to treat plague patients, the majority of whom were native. At that time, Cipto, a STOVIA graduate, was bored working in the colonial service and volunteered as a doctor in Malang. Without adequate personal protective equipment, Cipto attacked remote villages in Malang to eradicate the plague. While in a village, Cipto adopted a baby girl who had been orphaned by the plague.
Cipto then succeeded in conquering the deadly epidemic. For his great services, the Netherlands awarded him the Ridder in de Order van Oranje Nassau star award.
Place Related to Bandung with Cipto :
Cipto lived in Bandung twice but both times ended in exile. Cipto went to Bandung for the first time in December 1912 ( if we see the book A Century of National Press, I: Boekoe, 2007). Cipto was on the editorial board of the De Express newspaper which was founded by Douwes Dekker on 1 March 1912.
Cipto returned and lived in Bandung in 1920. Because, he with Douwes Dekker, and Soewardi Suryaningrat (they are Indische Partij) that wrote the third article in De Express was full of criticism, making the Dutch angry. The highlight was Suwardi Suryaningrat's article entitled Als Ik Een Nederlander Was (If I Were a Dutchman) which criticized the massive celebration of Dutch independence in Indonesia.The article published on 19 July 1913 was supported by other writings from Cipto and Douwes Dekker, resulting in Cipto and Suwardi being thrown into prison on 30 July 1913. On 18 August 1913 the three were sentenced to exile. The three of them chose to be exiled to the Netherlands and departed on September 6 1913. It is not surprising that the three of them were also called the banelling trio (the outcast trio).
Cipto was banished to Bandung. While in Bandung, Cipto practices at his clinic at Tegallegaweg 89. Cipto's place is often visited by various people with various needs, including communists.
On 16 December 1927, Cipto was sentenced to exile in Banda. Cipto was planned to go into exile on 4 January 1928. However, to prevent trouble from arising, Cipto was told to first move outside the city of Bandung. Outside the city that is probably Ujung Berung. Cipto does have a house in Ujung Berung. A photo that published in Sin Po, 26 November 1927 shows Cipto's house in Ujung Berung. In the photo, Cipto is posing in front of his house accompanied by his wife and PNI officials, including Soekarno, who visited him.
History of Cipto at that time:
The beginning of Cipto's fight begin when he often wrote essays telling about the various sufferings of the people due to Dutch colonialism. The Dutch considered the articles published in the daily de Express to be an attempt to instill a sense of hatred in readers towards the Dutch.
While actively writing at de Express, Cipto was actually already working as a (Dutch) government doctor, which he got after obtaining a STOVIA diploma. However, as a result of his writings, Cipto was dismissed from his job as a government doctor.
His dismissal as a government doctor actually made Cipto fight even more intensely. In 1912, he together with Douwes Dekker and Suwardi Suryaningrat (Ki Hajar Dewantara) founded Indische Partij, a political party which was the first party to struggle to achieve independent Indonesia.
Cipto and other fighters then formed the Bumiputera Committee specifically to protest the Dutch government's plans to celebrate the Netherlands' freedom from French colonialism. However, as a result of his activities, Cipto was exiled to the Netherlands in 1913.
However, a year later he was returned to Indonesia because he suffered from asthma. After returning to Indonesia, Cipto continued his struggle with the Volksraad against the Dutch. Unfortunately, he was again expelled from his residence in Solo and moved to Bandung as a city prisoner.
In Bandung, Cipto increasingly intensified his resistance by gathering figures from the national movement, one of whom was Ir. Sukarno. The Dutch succeeded in detecting his activities and exiled him as a prisoner in Banda Neira for thirteen years.
From Banda Neira, Cipto was then moved to Ujungpandang, Sukabumi, and finally moved to Jakarta. This area was his last city until the end of his life on March 8, 1943.
Cipto Mangunkusumo is known as a doctor who persistently fought for people's health and the independence of the Indonesian nation at the same time. He was one of the pioneers of one of the organizations that initiated efforts to liberate Indonesia, Indische Partij. Cipto Mangunkusumo known as the name of one of the major hospitals in Indonesia, the source of a short biography about Cipto Mangunkusumo is quoted from the book 'Dr. Cipto Mangunkusumo' (1992) by Soegeng Reksodihardjo.
