Pesman had joined the armed forces by 1910, when he was a second lieutenant, and by July 1939 he had been promoted to major general.

[1] During the Dutch East Indies campaign, Pesman was assigned command of the "Bandung Group" of the KNIL's forces in Java, comprising around 9,000 men.

The counterattack was heavily hindered by Japanese air superiority and the involved unit suffered significant casualties.

[3] The Bandung Group later attempted to check the Japanese advance towards Bandung in the Battle of Tjiater Pass, but failed and the Japanese forces broke through the KNIL defensive lines and captured Lembang.

[5] After his surrender, as a prisoner of war he was transported in late 1942 to Singapore, and later in January 1943 to Taiwan.