Suardi Tasrif

Tasrif began writing literature in 1945, inspired by Usmar Ismail, and within five years he had produced several poems, short stories, and scripts for plays.[1] After a foray into journalism, co-publishing the Soeara Indonesia magazine, he briefly joined the Voice of Free Indonesia radio at Bandung as a broadcaster during the Indonesian National Revolution.[1][4] After moving to Yogyakarta, he also lead the Berita Indonesia newspaper, which had been established by the nascent Indonesian Army in September 1945,[4][5] and helped Usmar Ismail manage the magazines Tentara and Arena.[1]

In 1951, Tasrif became the chief editor of the Abadi newspaper, which was affiliated with the Masyumi party and began publication on 2 January of that year.[6][7] He developed good relationships with other newspaper heads such as Mochtar Lubis (Indonesia Raya) and Rosihan Anwar (Pedoman), their papers generally adopting a similar political position in opposition to heavily nationalist publications such as Harian Rakjat or Suluh Indonesia.[8] The three of them, along with B.M. Diah, were founding members of the Indonesian branch of the International Press Institute. Abadi was shut down in 1960, when Tasrif refused to sign a document which would require the newspaper to support the Sukarno government's policies.[9] He had previously been a significant contributor to the Indonesian journalism code of ethics, published in 1954.[1][4]

After obtaining his law degree in 1965, Tasrif established his own law firm, sharing an office with Iskaq. He became an active member of the Indonesian Advocates' Association (Peradin) - designing its emblem and helping author a code of ethics for Indonesian advocates.[10] Early in the transition to the New Order, Tasrif along with other lawyers such as Yap Thiam Hien prominently featured in debates over reforms to the Indonesian legal system.[11] Due to Tasrif's journalistic experience and connections, he became one of the most consistent and well-known writers on legal and political issues in various newspapers and magazines, including Kompas, Sinar Harapan, Tempo, and Indonesia Raya.[4][12] Tasrif and Yap argued, with little success, for Indonesia's judicial system to transition to common law.[13] Throughout the late 1960s, Tasrif continued his activities at Peradin, joining its board in 1968 and elected its secretary-general in 1969. He also made efforts to form regional and international connections for the association.[14]

In 1970, the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (Lembaga Bantuan Hukum/LBH) was founded, after Tasrif and other Peradin advocates like Yap and Adnan Buyung Nasution successfully lobbied for it.[15][16] He was one of the defense lawyers in the prosecutions following the Malari incident.[4] The Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) appointed him as chairman of the organization's honorary board in 1978, though he would lament the reduced independence of the journalists in PWI, who he perceived as becoming increasingly linked with the ruling Golkar party.[4]