Copyright 2000 www.cosmopolis.ch Louis Gerber All rights
reserved.
Columbia
Chronologies of
Asian History and Culture
Indonesian history/a history of
Indonesia as an example
Hardcover, 751 p., Columbia University
Press, August 2000, ed. John S. Bowman.
Get it from Amazon.com,
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The Columbia Chronologies of Asian History And Culture, edited by John S.
Bowman offers an overview of political history, arts, culture, thought and
religion, science and technology, economics and everyday life of all Asian
countries from the Paleolithic era through 1998. The more than 30 Asian
countries are individually analyzed on 580 pages. According to its political,
military, economic and demographic weight, a state gets more or less space.
China is treated on 115, Japan on 75 and India on 120 pages. The almost 100
pages of appendices contain information on National and Independence days,
scientific-technological achievements in Asia and a chronological comparative
overview of what happened in Asia and Europe at a given time. The detailed index
takes another 70 pages. To make a long story short, this is the most
comprehensive Asian history available. The only, but crucial thing missing in
this reference work is a bibliography which would allow a reader to dig further
on a specific issue.
Let's take the entry on Indonesia as an example. Its
story is summarized on 15 pages. The description begins with the Pleistocene
epoch (approximately 1,8 million to 8 thousand B.C.). Early evidence (2000 B.C.-
A.D. 500), early Kingdoms (500-1377) and the rise of the Islamic kingdoms
(1290-1682) are the subsequent parts of the entry. The European presence in
Indonesia takes a bit more than four pages. In 1511, Portuguese explorers
captured the port of Malacca, erected a fort there and settled in, but
Portuguese corruption and disorganization soon led to the loss of the sea-trade
control of Malacca and to the rise of Sumatran maritime trade centers. In
1595-98, the first expeditions to the East Indies by competing Dutch trade companies
took place. In 1602, the Dutch East India Company was formed with a merger of
the competing companies. England also entered the spice trade. In 1605, the
Dutch East India Company occupied Ambon and established its headquarters.
In the first half of the 20th century, the
European presence in Indonesia became contested. In 1927, under the leadership
of Ahmad Sukarno (1901-70), the Perserikatan Nasional Indonesia (PNI) was founded
to unite nationalist groups in pacifist non-cooperation. Two years later,
Sukarno was arrested, the PNI banned and absorbed by the Independent People's
Pary (PRI) which sought independence through cooperation with the Dutch. In
1936, the Volksraad requested a discussion of steps to be taken toward
self-government; Holland's agreement to do so was superseded by the Second World
War in Europe. On January 11, 1942, Japan invaded Indonesia. On March 8, the
Dutch in Java surrendered to Japan and the governor-general was arrested.
The history of Indonesia from 1942 to 1998 is
summarized on four and a half pages. During the Japanese occupation from April
1942 to May 1945, many Indonesians collaborated with the Japanese but some of
them also secretly planned for independence; one of the lessons they had learned
was that their former Western masters could be defeated. The Japanese gradually
imposed harsher and harsher measures including enforced labor and strict
rationing. They also tried to enlist the support of Indonesians by promising
independence, formally on September 7, 1944. As the Japanese were about to lose
the war, they realized that the best they could do was to grant independence in
order to prevent the Dutch from taking back Indonesia. But the end of the war
came to abruptly.
On June 1, 1945, Sukarno proclaimed his Pancasila,
the Five Principles of Unity that became the foundation for Indonesian
nationalism. On August 10, the Japanese surrendered and accepted the Potsdam
Agreement, under which the British forces would temporarily occupy Indonesia to
protect the Dutch and other Allies. One week later, Sukarno declared the
independence of the new republic that represented predominantly Javanese
interests, with himself as head of state. August 17 is still today celebrated as
the Indonesian independence day. But in September and October of 1945, British
troops began to arrive. Japanese troops were still in Indonesia and decided to
reinforce control. By early October, there was open warfare that continued for
several weeks. In the end, the British took over. From October 28 to November
10, 1945, the British Indian troops fought Indonesian resistance at Surabaya. In
a major sweep, the British killed some six thousand Indonesians, today
commemorated on Heroes' Day on November 10.
In 1946, Indonesia was in turmoil. The Dutch
tried to reassert control and Sukarno was only one of the competing
Indonesian leaders, but he finally emerged as the only one who commanded enough respect to
stop the violence. On November 12, 1946, the Dutch agreed to recognize Sukarno's
republic, composed of Java, Sumatra and Madura, but only as a member of a
federal United States of Indonesia what would leave the Dutch in control of the
rest of Indonesia. Many Indonesians rejected the agreement and the turmoil
continued. On July 20, 1947, the Dutch recommenced military operations, but
stopped at the command of a United Nations resolution on August 4. On January
17, 1946, an agreement signed on the American warship USS Renville stated that
the Dutch sovereignty would continue until a United States of Indonesia was
established; the admission of states outside the republic would be submitted to
popular vote.
It is impossible to repeat all the details here.
The history of Indonesia ends in 1998, with Suharto's resignation on May 21 and
the appointment of vice president Habibie to fill out his five-year term, but
the army remained the power behind these developments. The account stops on
September 1998 with Indonesia "on the verge of economic and social
collapse." Therefore, there is no word about today's president, Wahid, his
government and the turmoil Indonesia has experienced since.
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