 Mihardja , who was born and raised in Garut , West Java , was trained as a journalist before moving to Batavia in 1941 to work for the state publisher of the Dutch East Indies , Balai Pustaka . While in Batavia , in 1945 he began associating with Chairil Anwar 's literary group Republika . After the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence and the start of the Indonesian National Revolution , he fled to West Java and participated in events led by the Socialist Party of Indonesia led by Sutan Sjahrir . He was not an atheist , although his association with the party led some to draw that conclusion . Mihardja drew upon this background while writing Atheis . 
