One of Our National Heroes

“We all have to believe in God, because God is just.” (diterjemahkan “Kita semua harus percaya kepada Tuhan, sebab Tuhan itu adil.”)

Before we even start, let me ask you a question. Do you recognize the quote above? To those who do, congratulations! But to those who don’t, it’s okay! I’m going to tell you whose quotation it is. Come on, let’s dive straight right into it, shall we?

The quote is belonged to Ahmad Yani (spelled Achmad Yani). That was his last words before he died. He was an Indonesian military commander. You—or we—probably knew him as one of the National Hero of Indonesia who died on October 1st 1965 because he was killed by members of the September 30th Movement (or called G30SPKI in bahasa Indonesia) during an attempt to kidnap him from his house.

He was born on June 19th 1922, Purworejo, Dutch Indies. And do you know? He fought so many battles when he was alive, like Indonesian National Revolution, General Offensive of 1 March 1949, and many more. He really did devote his life for our country, right? And that’s patriotism right there.

Being a student and an Indonesian citizen in this time of year, the world demands and expects many great things from us, as an Indonesian young generation. In order to do that, we need to have demeanor like commander Ahmad Yani.
First of all, bravery. While he was against the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) what we need to do is be honest and just to one another. Say right if it’s the truth, and say wrong if it’s wrong. And haven’t you heard? You don’t have to be scared if it’s not your fault.

Then, patriotism. No, it’s not what you think, you don’t need to go out there and fight battles like commander Ahmad Yani did back at the time. But to apply patriotism in our life, there’s so many things we can do, for examples we attend and follow the flag ceremony whole-heartedly, or study diligently, and there is many more!

Also, being responsible. If commander Ahmad Yani was always responsible for all of his actions, then we also need to be responsible for all of our actions. Like, collect assignments on time, do your prayers, do your exams and assignments honestly, and don’t cheat!

So now do you know who Commander Ahmad Yani really is? And what it means to be a National Hero? He became a National Hero wasn’t just because of his profession as a soldier, but also because of his good demeanor. So, as Indonesian’s young generation, we need to make him as our role-model!

Thank you and see you next time!!