National Hero Suryopranoto Known as a Labor Movement Leader

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – Indonesia honours the memory of national hero Raden Mas Suryopranoto, who dedicated his life to defending the rights of the common people and leading labor strikes during the Dutch colonial period. The older brother of Ki Hadjar Dewantara fought tirelessly for the welfare of workers, earning him the nickname “De Staking Koning” or “The Strike King” from the colonial government.

Suryopranoto, whose birth name was Iskandar, was born into a noble family of the Yogyakarta Palace on January 11, 1871. This background afforded him the opportunity to attend the Dutch elementary school, ELS.

After completing his civil service training, he worked as a civil servant in the city of Tuban. However, he was later fired from his job for slapping his Dutch superior in defense of his indigenous coworkers.

Suryopranoto then turned his attention to the social movement by founding the Mardi Kaskaya cooperative in 1900. He also founded the Barisan Kerja Adhi Dharma organization in 1915 to organize public schools, community discussions, and literacy courses.

His critical stance became increasingly evident when he led the labor organizations Personeel Fabrieks Bond (PFB) and Persatuan Pergerakan Kaum Buruh (PPKB) alongside Agus Salim. In 1922, he organized a strike involving approximately 3,000 pawnshop workers in Yogyakarta, which subsequently spread to various regions.

His courage in defending his fellow Indonesians led to his repeated dismissals from jobs in the Dutch colonial government. As a result of his resolute actions and courage in opposing injustice, Suryopranoto chose to devote his entire life to social movements and labor activism.

As a result of this uncompromising resistance, Suryopranoto was arrested and imprisoned multiple times by the Dutch government in Malang, Semarang, and Sukamiskin. He passed away in Cimahi on October 15, 1959, and was officially posthumously awarded the title of National Hero pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 310/1959.