Tjakrabirawa Regiment


The Tjakrabirawa Regiment was the presidential bodyguard unit of former Indonesian President Sukarno. The group was disbanded in 1966 during the upheavals of the transition to the New Order.

Brief history

The Tjakrabirawa regiment was formed by President Sukarno after several murder attempts by local terrorists to the Head of State in 1962. Its primary task is to provide security for the president and his family. Security for the president consist of individual protection and area protection. Its personnel were recruited from all branches of Indonesian military, such as Army's Raiders and the Army Parachute Commandos, the Navy Commando Operations Corps, the Air Force's Rapid Action Force and Police's Mobile Brigade. The first commandant and executive officer were Brigadier General M.Sabur and Colonel Maulwi Saelan. President Sukarno gave the name "Tjakrabirawa" after Krishna's fictional sacred weapon in 'wayang' mythology. The Regiment took a golden "Cakra" in a dark red pentagonal field as its badge and a brick red beret for its headgear, pushed to the left.
On 30 September 1965, Lieutenant Colonel Untung from the Regiment's 1st Honor Guard Battalion led the infamous 30 September Movement which eventually led to the liquidation of the Regiment. Its personnel then were returned to their respective services and Untung was later sentenced to death for his role in the coup attempt.
Presidential guard functions were subsequently taken over by the Military Police Command of the Armed Forces in early 1966, called Satgas Pomad Para. Subsequently, the Presidential Security Force was formed by New Order Government and is still responsible for presidential protection, as well as for honor guard duties in the capital.

Organization

The Tjakrabirawa organization consist of: