Indonesian Christian Party

Indonesian Christian Party
Partai Kristen Indonesia
AbbreviationParkindo
ChairmanWilhelmus Zakaria Johannes (first)
Melanchton Siregar (last)
Secretary-GeneralMaryoto (first)
Sabam Sirait (last)
Founded10 November 1945
Dissolved11 January 1973
Preceded byParki
Merged intoIndonesian Democratic Party
Succeeded byIndonesian Christian Party 1945
Prosperous Peace Party (claimed)
HeadquartersDjakarta
NewspaperKemudi
Sinar Harapan
Think tankAssociation of Indonesian Christian Intelligence
Student wingIndonesian Christian Student Movement
Indonesian Christian Pupil Movement
Youth wingIndonesian Christian Youth Movement
Women's wingIndonesian Christian Women's Association
Armed wingArrow Division (during Indonesian National Revolution)
Membership1,049,475 (1969)
IdeologyPancasila
Christian democracy
Political positionCentre-right
ReligionProtestant

The Indonesian Christian Party (Indonesian: Partai Kristen Indonesia), better known as Parkindo, was a Christian political party active in Indonesia from 1950 until 1973, when it was merged to make the Indonesian Democratic Party.

Founded by Johannes Leimena and Melanchton Siregar, the former Military Governor of North Sumatra, who was known as a local teacher in Tarutung. Its support was concentrated in Protestant areas of Indonesia. It had considerable influence despite the small number of Christians in Indonesia due to the large numbers of Christians in the civil service, the army and educational establishments and because of the high profile of party leader Johannes Leimena who served in several Indonesian cabinets and as deputy prime minister.[1] In the 1955 Indonesian legislative election, the party won 2.6% of the vote and eight seats in the People's Representative Council.[2] However, in the 1971 elections, the last it contested before being merged into the Indonesian Democratic Party, it gained only 1.34% of the vote.[3][4]

  1. ^ Feith (2007) p. 145
  2. ^ Feith (2007) p. 434
  3. ^ Evans (2003) pp. 21-21
  4. ^ Liddle (1994) p. 46