| The first proof
of the earliest inhabitans of Java was discovered by Dr. Eugene
Dubois in 1890. Fossils of the "Java Man" (Pithecanthropus
Erectus) dating back 500.000 years were followed by other
findings in later year. Migration movements to Indonesia have
been traced back to 3.000. 500 B.C. of Mongoloid stock from
China and Tonkin introducing New Stone, Bronze, and Iron Age
cultures and the Austronesian language.Indonesia came under
the influence of the IndianCivilisation through the gradual
influx of Indian traders in the first century A.D. when great
empires began to emerge bound to Hinduism and Buddhism. By
the seventh century, the powerful Buddhist Kingdom of Sriwijaya
expanded and it wasprobably during this period that the spectacular
Borobudur Buddhist sanctuary was built in Central Java.
The thirteenth century saw the rise of the fabulous Hindu
empire of Majapahit in East Java which united the whole of
Indonesia and parts of the Malay peninsula and ruled for two
centuries. Remnants of this glorious period in Indonesia's
history are the many monuments spread through Java, like Prambanan
temple near Yogyakarta, the Penataran temple complex in East
Java, the temple of Dieng and many others.
The first attempt to invade Indonesia was by the Mongol emperor
Kubilai Khan who was driven back in 1293. With the arrival
of Arab traders, Islam spread gradually till the end of the
16th century and replaced Hinduism and Buddhism as dominant
religions. Small Moslem Kingdoms arose, but none too strong
against European penetrations which followed. The first European
to set foot on Java was Marco Poli in 1292, but it was much
later that Portuguese arrived in pursuit of the spice trade
in 1509 and established trading posts which they controlled
from the strategic commercial centre of Malacca on the Malay
peninsula.
The Dutch followed at the turn of the 16th century and succeeded
in ousting the Potuguese to the eastern most islands where
the Spaniards held some ports. The Dutch expanded control
of the entire area in the 17th and 18th centurues and held
it till the outbreak of World War II. Known as the Dutch East
Indies, it fell under British rule for a short period (1811-1816)
when Holland was occupied by France during the Napoleonic
wars. The British Lt. Governor for Java and its dependencies,
Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, it was known for his liberal
attitude toward the people under colonial rule and his research
on the history of Java. Long bloody wars were launched by
the native people against the dutch Colonial government where
as independence on August 17 that same year. The returning
Dutch bitterly resisted the nationalist movements as intermittent
fighting followed. Finally an agreement was reached at The
Hague under United Nation auspices when Indonesia's sovereignty
over the former Dutch East Indies was recognized on December
9, 1949.
When all these regional wars of independence failed, Indonesian
nationalists began thinking of a more-organized struggle against
Dutch colonialism. The move began with the founding of Boedi
Oetomo, literally meaning "noble conduct," on May
20, 1908. This organization of Indonesian intellectuals was
initially set up for educational purposes but later turned
into politics. It was inspired by Japan's victory over Russia
in 1901, which also gave impetus to nationalist movements
in many parts of Indonesia. The founder of Boedi Oetomo was
Dr. Soetomo who was, at the time, a student of STOVIA, an
institution to train Indonesian medi-cal officers. Dr. Soetomo
was greatly influenced by Dr. Wahidin Soedirohoesodo and sup-ported
by Gunawan and Suradji.
In 1912 Sarekat Dagang Islam, the Association of Moslem Merchants,
was formed by Haji Samanhudi and others.
Its objective was at first to stimulate and promote the interest
of Indonesian business in the Dutch East Indies. However,
in 1912 this organization of middle class businessmen turned
into a political party and was renamed Sarekat Islam under
the leadership of H.O.S. Tjokroaminoto, Haji Agoes Salim and
others. In 1912 a progressive Moslem organization, Muhammadiyah,
was established by K.H. Akhmad Dahlan in Yogyakarta for the
purpose of social and economic reforms.In December of the
same year Partai Indonesia was founded by Douwes Dekker, later
named Setiabudi, with Dr. Tjipto Mangunkusumo and Ki Hajar
Dewantoro. The objective of the party was to strive for complete
independence of Indonesia. All three leaders of the party
were exiled by the colonial government in 1913. In 1914 communism
was introduced in the East Indies by three Dutch nationals-Sneevliet,
Baars and Brandsteder. In May 1920 Sarikat Islam split into
a right and a left wing, the latter was to become the Partai
Komunis Indonesia (PKI, the Indonesian Communist Party) under
the leadership of Semaun, Darsono, Alimin, Muso and others.
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The Powerless People's Council or Volksraad
In 1916 Sarikat Islam held its first convention in Bandung
and resolved the demand for self-government for Indonesia
in cooperation with the Dutch. When Sarikat Islam demanded
a share in the legislative power in the colony, the Dutch
responded by setting up the Volksraad in 1918 which was
virtually a powerless people's council with an advisory
status.
Indonesian representatives on the council were indirectly
elected through regional councils, but some of the other
members were appointed colonial officials.
The Volksraad later developed into a semi-legislative
assembly. Among the members of this body were prominent
nationalist leaders like Dr. Tjipto Mangunkusumo, H.O.S.
Tjokroaminoto, Abdul Muis, Dr. G.S.S.J. Ratulangi, M.H.
Thamrin, Wiwoho, Sutardjo Kartohadikusumo, Dr. Radjiman,
and Soekardjo Wiryopranoto.
Under the pressure of the social unrest in the Netherlands
at the end of World War I, the Dutch promised to grant
self-government to Indonesians. This was known as the
"November promise." It was a promise that was
never met.
Besides the Volksraad, there was another body called Raad
van Indie, "the Council of the Indies," whose
the members were appointed by the Government Achmad Djajadiningrat
and Sujono were among the very few Indonesian members
of this council.
In 1923 deteriorating economic conditions and increasing
labor strikes prompted the colonial government to put
severe restrictions on Indonesian civil liberties and
make amendments to the colonial laws and penal codes.
Freedom of assembly, speech and expression in writing
was restricted.
- Further Growth of Indonesian Organizations
Despite the political restrictions, on July 3, 1922 Ki Hajar
Dewantoro founded Taman Siswa, an organization to promote
national education. In 1924 the Indonesian Students Association,
"Perhimpunan Mahasiswa Indonesia," was formed
by Drs. Mohammad Hatta, Dr. Sukiman and others. This organization
became a driving force of the nationalist movement to gain
independence. The Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) staged
revolts against the colonial government in November 1926
in West Java, and in January 1927 in West Sumatra. After
their suppression the Government exiled many non-communist
nationalist leaders to Tanah Merah, which the Dutch called
"Boven Digul" in Irian Jaya. Dr. Tjipto Mangunkusumo
was exiled to Bandaneira.
In February 1927 Mohammad Hatta, Achmad Soebardjo and other
members of Indonesia's Movements attended the first international
convention of the "League Against Imperialism and Colonial
Oppression" in Brussels, together with Jawaharlal Nehru
and many other prominent nationalist leaders from Asia and
Africa. In July 1927, Soekarno, Sartono and others formed
the Indonesian Nationalist Party (PNI), which adopted Bahasa
Indonesia as the official language. This party adopted a
militant policy of non-cooperation with the Government as
the result of a fundamental conflict of interest between
Indonesian nationalism and Dutch colonialism. In the same
year, an all-Indonesia nationalist movement was organized
by Indonesian youth to replace earlier organizations, which
had been based on regionalism, such as "Young Java,"
"Young Sumatra" and "Young Ambon."
On October 28, 1929, delegates to the second Indonesian
Youth Congress in Jakarta pledged allegiance to "one
country, one nation and one language, Indonesia." Concerned
about the growing national awareness of freedom, the colonial
authorities arrested the PNI leader, Soekarno, in December
1929. This touched off widespread protests by Indonesians.
In 1930 the world was in the grip of an economic and monetary
crisis. The severe impact of the crisis was felt in the
Indies, a raw material producing country.
The colonial government responded with a strict balanced
budget policy that aggravated economic and social conditions.
Two other leaders of the PNI, Gatot Mangkupradja and Maskun
Supriadinata, were arrested and tried in court on charges
of plotting against the Government. Soekarno was released
in September 1931 but exiled again in August 1933. He remained
in Dutch custody until the Japanese invasion in 1942.
In January 1931, Dr. Soetomo founded Persatuan Bangsa Indonesia,
the Indonesian Unity Party. Its objective was to improve
the social status of the Indonesian people. In April of
the same year, PNI was abandoned. A new party was formed
by Sartono, LLM and named Partai Indonesia, the Indonesian
Party. Its basis was nationalism, its line was independence.
Also in 1931, Sutan Syahrir formed Pendidikan Nasional Indonesia.
Known as the new PNI, it envisaged national education. Mohammad
Hatta joined this organization. In 1933 a mutiny broke out
on the Dutch warship "De Zeven Provincien" for
which Indonesian nationalists were held responsible. The
following year Sutan Syahrir and Mohammad Hatta and other
nationalist leaders were arrested and banished until 1942.
In 1935, Soetomo merged Persatuan Bangsa Indonesia and Boedi
Oetomo to form Partai Indonesia Raya (Parindra). Its fundamental
goal was the independence of Great Indonesia. In July 1936,
Sutardjo submitted to the "Volksraad" a petition
calling for greater autonomy for Indonesia. This petition
was flatly rejected by the Dutch-dominated Council. In 1937
Dr. A.K. Gani started the Indonesian People's Movement,
Gerakan Rakyat Indonesia, which was based on the principles
of nationalism, social independence and self-reliance. In
1939 the All Indonesian Political Federation, GAPI, called
for the establishment of a full-fledged Indonesian parliament.
This demand was rejected by the Government in Holland in
1940.
GAPI also demanded an Indonesian military service for the
purpose of defending the country in times of war. Again,
this was turned down, notwithstanding the impending outbreak
of World War II. At the time, there were widespread movements
for fundamental and progressive reforms in the colonies
and dependencies in Asia.
After their attack on Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, the Japanese
forces moved southwards to conquer several Southeast Asian
countries. After Singapore had fallen, they invaded the Dutch
East Indies and the colonial army surrendered in March 1942.
Soekarno and Hatta were released from their detention. The
Japanese began their propaganda campaign for what they called
"Great East Asia Coprosperity". But Indonesians
soon realized that it was a camouflage for Japanese imperialism
in place of Dutch colonialism.
To further the cause of Indonesia's independence, Soekarno
and Hatta appeared to cooperate with the Japanese authorities.
In reality, however, Indonesian nationalist leaders went underground
and masterminded insurrections in Blitar (East Java), Tasikmalaya
and Indramayu (West Java), and in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
Under the pressure of the 4th Pacific war, where their supply
lines were interrupted, and the increasing of Indonesian insurrections,
the Japanese ultimately gave in to allow the red-and-white
flag to fly as the Indonesian national flag. Recognition of
"Indonesia Raya" as the national anthem and Bahasa
Indonesia as the national language followed. Hence, the youth's
pledge of 1928 was fulfilled.
After persistent demands, the Japanese finally agreed to place
the civil administration of the country into Indonesian hands.
This was a golden opportunity for nationalist leaders to prepare
for the proclamation of Indonesia's independence.
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