Try Sutrisno

Try Sutrisno (Indonesian pronunciation: [ˌt̪ri suˈt̪risnɔ]; 15 November 1935 – 2 March 2026) was an Indonesian politician and army general who served as the sixth vice president of Indonesia from 1993 to 1998. Born in Surabaya, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), Try graduated from the Army Technical Academy in 1959. During his career, Try held the positions of Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Army (1986–1988) and Commander of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Indonesia (1988–1993).

Try Sutrisno was born on 15 November 1935 in Surabaya, Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia). His father, Subandi, was an ambulance driver, and his mother, Mardiyah, was a housewife. Following the proclamation of Indonesian Independence in 1945, the Indonesian National Revolution began. Try and his family moved from Surabaya to Mojokerto. His father then worked as a medical officer for the Poncowati Army Battalion, forcing Try to stop his schooling and make a living as a cigarette and newspaper seller.^{[citation needed]} At age 13, Try wanted to join the Poncowati Battalion and fight, but no one took him seriously, and he ended up being employed as a courier. Try's duty was to find information on areas occupied by the Dutch Army as well as retrieving medicine for the Indonesian Army. Finally in 1949, the Dutch retreated and recognized Indonesia's independence. Try and his family then returned to Surabaya, where he completed his education in 1956.^{[citation needed]}

After graduating from high school, Try joined the Army Technical Academy (Atekad), now Akmil, in 1956. He passed an entrance examination but then failed the physical examination. Despite this, Major General Djatikoesoemo took an interest in Try and summoned him back. Try participated in a psychological examination in Bandung, West Java, and was then accepted into Atekad as a cadet.^{[citation needed]}

Try's first military experience was in 1957, when he fought against the PRRI Rebellion. The rebellion was led by a group of separatists in Sumatra wishing to establish an alternative government to that of President Sukarno's. Try completed his military education in 1959, when he graduated from Atekad and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Indonesian Army.

Try's early experience in the ABRI included stints in Sumatra, Jakarta, and East Java. In 1972, Try was sent to the Army Staff College (Seskoad). In 1974, Try was chosen to be President Suharto's adjutant. Suharto took a liking to Try and from then on, Try's military career would skyrocket.

In 1978, Try was appointed to the position of Regional Command Chief of Staff at KODAM XVI/Udayana. A year later, he would become the Regional Commander of KODAM IV/Sriwijaya, where he had started his career. As Regional Commander, Try moved to suppress the crime rate as well as stopping lead smuggling. He also participated in an environmental campaign to return Sumatran elephants to their natural habitats.

In 1982, Try was appointed to the Regional Commander of KODAM V/Jaya and was stationed in Jakarta.

1984 would see the government pass a law which required all organizations, whether it be political or non-political, to adopt the national ideology of Pancasila as the sole guiding principle (Azas Tunggal). It would also see Islamic dissent reach its peak as preachers began teaching against the adoption of Pancasila as the national ideology, what they perceived to be the government's Christianization, the government's family planning program, and the dominance of the Indonesian economy by the Chinese Indonesian population.