The Indonesian genocide was one of the great crimes of the twentieth century. Its victims were leftists who struggled against colonialism and fought for Indonesian self-determination.
“The remaining survivors of 1965 are old, and many are still hesitant to speak out. They have good reason to be cautious: as Hearman points out in her conclusion, the Indonesian state, especially the army, continues to harass suspected “communists,” and meetings about 1965 are frequently broken up by groups calling themselves Islamic or anti-communist, often in collusion with the security forces.In such an environment, it is all the more important that Hearman rescues the stories of some of the victims. Unmarked Graves not only helps us understand one of the great crimes of the twentieth century. By relating the life stories of different activists, Hearman resurrects a group of people whose contribution to Indonesian society its rulers have tried to erase.“
