CGMI was founded in 1956, through the merger of communist-led university student groups in Bogor, Bandung and Yogyakarta (which had emerged in the early 1950s).
The organization claimed 500 members in Surabaya, 400 in Malang and 300 at the University of Indonesia in Djakarta.
The expansion could be explained, at least partially, due to recruitment in different institutions founded by the Communist Party (such as UNRA).
It campaigned against imperialism (Dutch, British and American), supporting the national government against the PRRI rebellion.
[2][3] In the first half of the 1960s, clashes between pro- and anti-government student organizations rocked many Indonesian universities.