provide military training for the local communists. Violence erupted in Blitar in March 1968, as local peasants attacked leaders and members of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in retaliation for the role it had played in anti-communist persecution; about 60 NU members were killed. According to Australian political scientist Harold Crouch, it was unlikely that the killings of NU members in Blitar had been ordered by the PKI leaders. The military became aware of the PKI enclave and crushed it by mid-1968. Some party members were outside Indonesia at the time of the 30 September events; a sizeable delegation had traveled to the People's Republic of China to participate in the anniversary celebration of the Chinese Revolution. Others had left Indonesia to study in Eastern Europe, particularly Albania. Although the party apparatus continued to function in exile, it was largely isolated from political developments in Indonesia. In Java, some villages that were known refuges for members (or suspected sympathizers) were identified by authorities and closely watched for a long time. , former PKI members remained blacklisted from many occupations (including government jobs). During his presidency, Abdurrahman Wahid invited PKI exiles to return to Indonesia in 1999 and proposed the removal of restrictions on the open discussion of communist ideology. In arguing for the removal of the ban, Wahid cited Indonesia's original 1945 constitution (which did not prohibit, or specifically mention, communism). Wahid's proposal was vigorously opposed by some sectors of Indonesian society, especially conservative Islamic groups. In an April 2000 protest, the Indonesian Islamic Front rallied ten thousand people in Jakarta against Wahid's proposal. The army did not immediately reject the proposal, promising a "comprehensive and meticulous study" of the idea. Election results See also Communism in Sumatra Indonesian communist exiles in Tirana Indonesian National Revolution References Citations Sources Brands, H. W. "The limits of Manipulation: How the United States didn't topple Sukarno." Journal of American History 76.3 (1989): 785–808. online External links People of Indonesia, Unite and Fight to Overthrow the Fascist Regime Defence speech given by Sudisman in 1967 Shadow Play - Information regarding the 1965 coup and subsequent persecution of the PKI. The First Period of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI): 1914-1926 Further reading Hindley, Donald. The Communist Party of Indonesia, 1951–1963 (U of California Press, 1966). Jochen Hippler, Nasr Hamid Abu Zaid, Amr Hamzawy: Krieg, Repression, Terrorismus. Politische Gewalt und Zivilisation in westlichen und muslimischen Gesellschaften. ifa, Stuttgart