Dutch Ethical Policy and Indonesian National Revival
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The period of the Dutch Ethical Policy and Indonesian National Revival was a period in Indonesian history spanning from 1899 until the Japanese Invasion in 1942. During this period, the people of the Indonesian archipelago began to develop a national consciousness which was to finally lead to Independence in 1945.
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[edit] Formulation of the Dutch Ethical Policy
In 1899, the liberal Dutch Lawyer Conrad Théodoor van Deventer published an essay in the Dutch journal De Gids which claimed that the Colonial Government had a moral responsibility to return the wealth that the Dutch had received from the East Indies to the indigenous population. At around the same time, Pieter Brooshooft, a journalist with the Semarang based De Locomotief journal published articles about the need for an Ethical Policy to improve the welfare of the native peoples. The Ethical Policy and the ideas it reflected were a response to the Cultivation System that had prevailed until 30 years previously.
[edit] Aims
The supporters of the Ethical Policy were concerned about the social and cultural conditions holding back the native population. They tried to raise awareness among the natives of the need to free themselves from the fetters of the fuedal system and to develop themselves along Western lines.
On 17 September 1901, in a formal speech to parliament, the newly crowned Queen Wilhelmina formally articulated the new policy - that the Dutch Government had a moral obligation to the native people of the Dutch East Indies that could be summarised in the 'Three Policies' of Irrigation, [Trans]migration and Education.
[edit] Irrigation
The Ethical Policy promoted efforts to improve the lot of the ordinary people through irrigation programmes, the introduction of banking services for the native population, and subsidies for native industries and handicrafts.
[edit] Migration
The Ethical Policy first introduced the concept of transmigration from over-populated Java to the less densely populated areas of Sumatra and Kalimantan, beginning with government sponsored schemes from 1905 onwards. However the numbers of people moved during the period of the Ethical Policy was a tiny fraction of the increase in population in Java during the same period.
[edit] Education
Perhaps the most significant effect of the Ethical Policy was the expansion of education in the Dutch East Indies, particularly during the period from 1900–1905 when JH Amendanon (1852–1925) was the Minister for Culture, Religion and Industry. During this period, schools were built for both the nobility and ordinary people in almost every region.
[edit] National Revival
The new emphasis on education led to the development of a small, highly educated native elite, who, during the 1920s and 30s began to articulate a rising anti-colonialsim and national consciousness. Two important events in this process were the establishment of the youth group, Budi Utomo in 1908, and the Second Youth Congress in 1928, where the famous Youth Oath (Sumpah Pemuda) was adopted, establishing the nationalist goals of: one country - Indonesia, one people - Indonesian, and one language - Indonesian.
[edit] Political Awakenings
During this period the first Indonesian political parties began to emerge. The first was the Indische Partij in 1912, and in the same year Haji Samanhudi formed Sarekat Dagang Islam, the forerunner of today's Sarekat Islam. Muhammadiyah was established by KH Ahmad Dahlan in Yogyakarta, and Dwijo Sewoyo and some associates formed the Peasant's Insurance Cooperative (Asuransi Jiwa Bersama Bumi Putera) in Magelang.
On 20 July 1913, Suwardi Suryaningrat, who had connections with the Bumi Putera Committee wrote Als ik eens Nederlander was (What if I were a Dutchman?) a striking protest against the plans of the Dutch Colonial Government to celebrate 100 years of Dutch Independence. As a result of this article, Dr Tjipto Mangunkusumo and Suwardi Suryoningrat were tried and sentenced to exile in the Banda Islands. However, they were given the alternative choice of transportation to the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, Suwardi pursued studies in field of Education, while Dr Tjipto fell ill and returned home to Indonesia.
[edit] The Development of a National Consciousness
In 1918 a proto-parliament, the Volksraad, met for the first time. 39% of its members were native Indonesians. During this year, the Dutch government agreed that at some, unspecified point in the future, Indonesians would be granted self-rule, but in subsequent years did nothing to follow up this aim.
The next twenty years saw the emergence of some of the major figures and organisations that were to play a major role in the move to Independence and in post-Independence politics in the 1950s, including Sukarno, Mohammed Hatta, Sutan Sjahrir, the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and the Indonesian National Party (PNI). In action similar to the Youth Congress, the PNI in 1928 adopted the red and white flag of Indonesia, declared Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia) as the national language, and Indonesia Raya as the national anthem.
However, it was not until the Japanese defeat in 1945 that these prominent figures took the initiative and declared Indonesian Independence.
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading
- Anderson, Ben (1972). Java in a Time of Revolution: Occupation and Resistance, 1944-1946. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-8014-0687-0.
