The Ambush of Australian Soldiers in Bogor

After the defeat of Japan, the situation in Jakarta and its surrounding areas turned chaotic. As an Australian War Crimes Detachment officer investigating Japanese war crimes, Frederick George Birchall, whose rank was squadron leader, knew very well that danger could come at any time. He was prepared.

In a letter to his cousin Tom Francis in Melbourne, Australia in March 1946, Birchall wrote: "Therefore, I am trying to learn to say (in Indonesian) 'Hidup Indonesia' (Long Live Indonesia) and a few other similar words. I will also draw a large Australian flag on my vehicle... I am not taking any chances...". Birchall's letter is now kept in the Australian War Memorial, Canberra.

However, man can only plan. A month later, Birchall, still wearing his Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) uniform, was found dead on a small hill near Maseng Station, south of Bogor. Several gunshot wounds were visible all over his body.

"From the wounds, I estimate that he was shot from a very close distance," said Priyatna Abdurrasyid, then a lieutenant from the Army Police (PT) who was assigned by the Headquarters of the Indonesian Republican Army (TRI) to find Birchall.

Ambushed by Kawilarang's troops

Bogor-Sukabumi border, April 17, 1946. Dusk had just fallen when residents around Caringin were stunned by the rattle of gunfire coming from the road. According to Odah, the incident was short-lived and didn't lead to a major battle that required villagers to evacuate. "At that time, I heard from the adults that two cars containing Dutch soldiers were attacked by our soldiers," said Odah, who was eleven years old at the time of the incident.

The two jeeps, said to belong to Dutch soldiers, turned out to be a group of Allied investigators into Japanese war crimes. They consisted of four Australians: Squadron Leader F.G. Birchall, Captain Alastair MacKenzie, Flight Lieutenant Hector Murdoch McDonald, a civilian named Hanson, and two British military members Captain Collins and Sergeant Bill Williams.  

"They had just returned from a friendly visit to the locals," Lt Col R.C. Smith, the three Australian officers' superior officers, said in a letter of condolence to Birchall's mother. The letter is now in the collection of Nick West, one of Birchall's nephews.  

It was later discovered that the Allied group was ambushed by Lieutenant Bustomi Burhanuddin's company, part of Yon II of the Bogor TRI Regiment led by Major A.E. Kawilarang. They mistook the white men for Dutch soldiers who were spying on the movements of Kawilarang's troops, as reported by several local residents.

"I myself believe that Bustomi and his troops didn't know that the victims of their ambush were Australians," Kawilarang said in his biography Untuk Sang Merah Putih written by Ramadhan KH.  

However, according to the testimony of the ambush victims who managed to escape, Birchall had told the ambushers that they were not members of the Dutch military. "He stood on the jeep and shouted: 'We are Australians!'," as quoted by the Canberra Times newspaper on April 20, 1946.  

As a result of the ambush, Captain Alastair McKanzie and Flight Lieutenant Hector Murdoch McDonald died on the spot. Hanson and Sergeant Bill Williams escaped in a wounded condition with one of the cars. Captain Collins made it to the nearest Allied army post after being treated by locals. Meanwhile, Birchall was kidnapped by Bustomi's company, and after that, his fate was unclear as he was declared missing.

The Search for Birchall

The Indonesian military quickly responded. Captain Musa Harjadiparta, the Republic of Indonesia (RI) liaison officer with the British and Dutch, assigned Lieutenant Priyatna Abdurrasyid, a member of the Cicurug Army Police, to track down Birchall's whereabouts. "The Commanding Officer, Major General Didi Kartasasmita, wanted the officer to be found, dead or alive, either one...," said Musa.

According to Captain Musa, the operation would determine the political stakes for Indonesia in the eyes of the international community, as the deadly incident was being "played" by the Dutch to attack Indonesia's position as a government supported by extremists. With this issue, the Dutch also tried to disrupt Indonesia's good relations with Australia, which was then controlled by the Labor Party.

The Dutch (and British) military moved quickly by mobilizing troops and ciphers to find Birchall. Priyatna testified that, after the ambush, dozens of tanks and hundreds of soldiers roamed between Caringin and Maseng Station almost every day. "It was as if there was a race to find Birchall between us TRI and the British and Dutch military," said the soldier who later turned to an academic.  

To find Birchall, Priyatna searched the route around Cicurug, Cigombong, Caringin and Maseng. His effort was not in vain. During the search, he found two Maseng residents who witnessed Bustomi's company executing Birchall. "They said the perpetrators were two Japanese and three Indonesians," said Priyatna.  

Apparently, after ambushing and capturing Birchall, Bustomi's company interrogated him. Knowing that Birchall was an Allied officer assigned to look for war criminals, two former Japanese soldiers who defected and joined Bustomi's company were enraged. Aided by three Indonesians, they executed Birchall and seized his documents.  

"The documents were given to me by Bustomi and I read them. Since then I knew that the man who was shot dead was Squadron Leader Birchall," Kawilarang said.  

After the execution, Birchall's body was buried on a small hill adjacent to Maseng Station. According to Maseng residents, the small hill was a forest-garden overgrown with various kinds of fruits. "The owner is Haji Miin, the landlord here," said Haji Yani, one of the elders of Maseng Village.  

One afternoon, April 21, 1946, accompanied by two Maseng residents who were ordered by Lieutenant Bustomi to bury Birchall's body, Priyatna rushed to the place. However, problems arose: Maseng Station was being watched by the British and Dutch military. From their spy information, the British and Dutch military had already detected the presence of Birchall's grave around Maseng Station. "This was evidenced by the deployment of tanks, armored vehicles, and hundreds of soldiers standing guard around the station," said Priyatna.  

Priyatna was only able to get closer to the location at dusk, after the British-Dutch troops guarding around Maseng Station left. Secretly, the three of them dug the grave. Birchall's body, still wearing an Australian army uniform, was swollen and foul-smelling. "After wrapping it in mats and banana leaves, we brought Birchall's body to Maseng Station and took a freight train straight to Bogor," Priyatna recalled.

A few kilometers before Bogor, the train carrying Birchall's body was stopped by Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) officers who were already waiting there. After that, Birchall's body was officially handed over by the representative of the Government of the Republic of Indonesia to the Australian representative in Jakarta.

"On April 22, 1946, Birchall's burial ceremony was held at Petamburan Cemetery, Jakarta, where Minister of Information Mohammad Natsir was present as a representative of the Republic...," stated A.H. Nasution in Sekitar Perang Kemerdekaan Indonesia (Jilid2): Diplomasi atau Bertempur (Around the Indonesian War of Independence (Volume 2): Diplomacy or Combat).

Motive for the Murder

It was never clear what exactly the motive behind the ambush and assassination was. Officially, the Indonesian government condemned the incident and rejected TRI's involvement in it. "I consider it a heinous murder and there was absolutely no presence of Indonesian soldiers in the area where the incident occurred," said Defense Minister Amir Sjarifuddin, as quoted by The Sydney Morning Herald, April 22, 1946.

However, as a manifestation of Indonesia's goodwill, Prime Minister Sutan Sjahrir ordered the formation of a special team to investigate the case. After ten days of work, on May 3, 1946 the investigating team announced that the main perpetrators of the ambush and murder were two Japanese (Nishida and Karta) assisted by three Indonesians.  

"The murders they carried out were aimed at obtaining lists and pictures of war criminals owned by the three Australian officers," wrote A.H. Nasution.

Nasution's explanation is intertwined with the opinion of historian Des Alwi, which was conveyed to Priyatna one day. According to Des, the two Japanese were actually the main Allied fugitives since they fled Ambon. "Des said that in Ambon, the two Japanese were involved in the cruel killings of Australians, British, and Americans," Priyatna said.

While appreciating Indonesia's "honesty and good intentions", the Australian government secretly doubted that there was no involvement of the Indonesian army in the incident. In a confidential telegram to the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, Australian representative A.D. Brookes called the Indonesian government's clarification nonsense. "In the attack on the convoy, a TRI unit participated in it," Brookes wrote in Historical Documents, Department of External Affairs, 1946, January-June, Vo. 9, No. 204.

The Australian government's suspicion wasn't baseless, especially referring to Kawilarang's statement in his biography. Despite believing that the case was merely an "accident of war" and that there was no intentional factor from Bustomi's company, Kawilarang acknowledged TRI's involvement. However, as a subordinate, Kawilarang certainly could not do anything. Instead of going against central policy, he was "forced" to hand over five of his men involved - including two former Japanese soldiers - to the government for trial.

The five soldiers were thrown into prison. However, before they could be brought to trial, the two Japanese who were accused of being the main perpetrators died inside the Purwakarta military prison from the explosion of a grenade that was thrown to the wall of their cell.

"It could be that someone deliberately threw the grenade so that the two Japanese could commit suicide," said Priyatna, who led the transfer of the two Japanese from Sukabumi to Purwakarta.  

So, what was the fate of the three Indonesian soldiers? There are no sources or documents that mention their fate. Until now, this case is still shrouded in a fog of mystery.