L. B. Moerdani

General Leonardus Benjamin Moerdani (also publicly known as L. B. Moerdani or Benny Moerdani and in foreign media as Murdani; 2 October 1932 – 29 August 2004) was the Commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces and Commander of the Kopkamtib from 1983 to 1988, and the Minister of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia from 1988 to 1993. During this time, he played an important role in Indonesian political and social life. He was noted as a Catholic leader in a predominantly Muslim country.

Moerdani spent nearly his entire career in military intelligence, and was sometimes described as a "spymaster."

Moerdani was born on 2 October 1932 at Cepu, in the Blora Regency in Central Java, to R. G. Moerdani Sosrodirjo, a railway worker and his Indo Eurasian wife Jeanne Roech, who was half German. Moerdani was the 3rd out of 11 children. Although a Muslim, Moerdani Sosrodirjo tolerated his wife's and in their turn, his children's Catholic faith.

After the Indonesian Declaration of Independence on 17 August 1945, Moerdani was caught up in the wave of nationalism. In October 1945, aged 13, Moerdani took part in an assault on a Kempeitai headquarters in Solo after the Kempetai refused to surrender to Indonesian troops. When the People's Security Army (TKR), the precursor to the Indonesian Armed Forces was formed, Moerdani joined a Student Army (Tentara Pelajar) unit which came under the authority of an Indonesian Army Brigade. During the Second Dutch military offensive, Moerdani was part of the Abdoel Latif Company of Tentara Pelajar defending the city of Surakarta. On the afternoon of 21 December 1948, Moerdani was wounded when his unit was engaged by a Dutch Universal Carrier. One of the bullet fired from the armored vehicle shattered his rifle buttstock and he was hit by the shrapnel, rendering him unconscious. He was immediately brought to safety by other members of the Tentara Pelajar.

After Indonesian independence, Moerdani completed his education, graduating from middle school and going on to high school; in the meantime taking a part-time job helping his uncle sell goods. In 1951, the Indonesian Government began undertaking demobilization but Moerdani's brigade was deemed to have performed well enough for its soldiers to continue serving with ABRI. Moerdani, together with his brigade enlisted with the Army Officers Education Center (P3AD) and began training in January 1951. At the same time, Moerdani also took part in the Infantry Trainers School (SPI).

Moerdani completed his military education from P3AD in April 1952 and from SPI in May 1952. He was also given the rank of Chief Warrant Officer. 2 years later, in 1954, Moerdani received his commission as a Second Lieutenant and was stationed at TT III Siliwangi, which looked after the security of West Java.

In a bid to deal with the threat of Darul Islam, Colonel Alex Evert Kawilarang, the Commander of TT III Siliwangi formed the TT III Siliwangi Commando Unit (Kesko TT III). Their success interested the Army Headquarters in Jakarta to endorse the formation of a Special Forces Unit. As such, in 1954, the Army Commando Unit (Korps Komando Angkatan Darat or KKAD) was formed. Moerdani was assigned as a trainer for the soldiers wishing to join KKAD and was appointed Head of the Teaching Bureau. In 1955, KKAD went through a name change, and it was now known as the Army Paracommando Regiment (Resimen Para Komando Angkatan Darat or RPKAD). Not long after, Moerdani was appointed a Company Commander.

As a member of RPKAD, Moerdani became part of the battle to suppress the Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Indonesia (PRRI), a Sumatran-based rebel group. In March 1958, Moerdani parachuted down behind enemy lines in Pekanbaru and Medan to prepare the groundwork for ABRI to take over the two cities. A month later, on 17 April 1958, Moerdani took part in Operation 17 August, an operation which struck the killing blow on the PRRI rebellion. Moerdani's next assignment was against the Universal Struggle Charter (Permesta), another rebel group in Sulawesi. Similar to what he did in Sumatra, Moerdani and his troops laid down the foundations for an all out attack on Permesta who surrendered in June 1958.