A Social Gathering of the Opposition

News that Oei Tjoe Tat would visit Salatiga, Central Java, in May 1986 reached Stanley Adi Prasetyo. Oei, who had served as a state minister under President Sukarno, was planning to visit the family of his wife, Rika, also known as Kwee Loan Nio, who hailed from that city. To Stanley, then an electrical engineering student at Satya Wacana Christian University in Salatiga, Oei’s name meant little because he had long disappeared from the political spotlight. After all, Oei had spent 1966 to 1977 as a political prisoner under the New Order.

Things were different, however, when Stanley mentioned the planned visit to Arief Budiman, a lecturer at the university. Arief, who had an extensive network of contacts, saw Oei’s visit as an opportunity to connect with influential figures. The older brother of activist Soe Hok Gie invited Oei to join a discussion group on campus. Curious, Stanley asked Arief about Oei Tjoe Tat’s background. In response, Arief handed him a bundle of photocopied pages. “That was the memoir he had written for his children and grandchildren,” Stanley recalled at the Tempo office on Thursday, July 2, 2026.