Brilio.net/en - Indonesias history is full of incredible stories. It is a young country in the modern sense - it declared independence in 1945 - but its history stretches far back in time. While there is much to celebrate, a history that includes centuries Dutch colonization and Japanese occupation in World War II has left behind some back memories. Here we take a look at some of the darker parts of its history.
1. Construction of the Great Post Road
Herman Willem Daendels was a Dutch politician who served as the 36th Governor General of the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) between 1808 - 1811. Daendels most famous accomplishment was the construction of the Great Post Road (Jalan Raya Pos), a road spanning the whole northern coast of Java, from Anjer (Anyer) in Banten all the way to Panaroecan (Panarukan) in East Java.
La Grande Route, as Daendels called it, was built using unpaid Javanese forced labor, who performed the punishing work in terrible conditions. There were uprisings against Daendels servitude, resulting some bloody events, including a battle between local army under Prince Kornel (Pangeran Kusumadinata IX of Sumedang) and Daendels army at Cadas Pangeran, West Java.
According to a note by Major William Thorn, the thousand-kilometre road was completed in only one year from 1808 to 1809, and roughly 12,000 Javanese workers died in the process. The road still exists and is known as the Pantura highway, connecting all of Java together.
2. Chinese Massacre in Batavia
Unrest grew among Chinese-Indonesian sugar mill workers through the month of September 1740. As sugar prices declined and wages shrank, the workers sacked and burned several mills. The first major outbreak of violence was on October 7, when a mob of hundreds of Chinese workers killed 50 Dutch soldiers. The colonial authorities responded by disarming the workers, fearful of an attack by night.
The next day there was more violence as thousand of Chinese and Dutch clashed. By now, nearly 2,000 Chinese lay dead and much of the population was unarmed. Rumors began to spread through the other ethnic communities in Batavia, including slaves and local soldiers, that the Chinese planned to attack them. The tensions exploded into a violent pogrom and orgy of killing that lasted until October. All in all, about 10,000 Chinese were killed, decimating the community.
3. The Westerling Genocide in Celebes
In a more recent case of bloodletting Raymond Pierre-Paul Westerling (nicknamed De Turk) was a Dutch military officer who leda massacre of civilians in Celebes (now Sulawesi) during the Indonesian National Revolution after World War II.
In December 1946, Westerling and his army terrorized dozens of villages in Celebes, forcing the local inhabitants to undergo what became known as the Westerling method of political purging. Men were separated from women and children, and those accused of being extremists, terrorists and murderers were summarily executed with bayonets and guns.
Westerlings brutal campaign continued until January 1947. His actions restored Dutch control over southern Sulawesi, but he was removed from his post the following year as public criticism rose over his actions.
Indonesia says 40,000 people were killed by Westerling and his troops, while Westerling himself said there were only 600 victims in Sulawesi.
4. The 30 September Movement
This is one of the most mysterious events in Indonesian history. Presidential guard (Tjakrabirawa) commander Lieutenant Colonel Untung Syamsuri formed an assault troop consisting of soldiers from Tjakrabirawa and the Diponegoro (Central Java), and Brawijaya (East Java) commands and kidnapped members of Indonesias Army General Staff, accusing them of planning a coup d'tat. Three officers were killed in their homes. Three more were taken alive, tortured and killed in Lubang Buaya, in East Jakarta.
However, their main target, General Abdul Haris Nasution, managed to escape by climbing over a wall of the Iraqi embassy garden near his house. His five-year-old daughter was shot and killed. The bodies were taken to Lubang Buaya and stuffed into a narrow well dug into the ground. The hole was covered by a banana tree trunk.
The group then took over strategic spots in Jakarta but were driven off them by other soldiers, led by Major General Suharto. The bodies of the military officers, now known as Revolutionary Heroes) were recovered from the well and given a state funeral.
This event marked the beginning of Suhartos takeover of the country, as he took power ostensibly to keep the country stable. He would not relinquish power until 1998.
5. Anti-communist purge in 1965-66
This is the bloodiest and most brutal episode in Indonesian history. Members of Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) for the 30 September Movement. Anti-PKI demonstrations soon erupted into violence all over the country. Communists were purged and the party banned. The massacres began in October 1965 and reached their peak later that year before gradually slowing in the early months of 1966.
The violent started in the capital, Jakarta, and spread to Central and East Java and, later, Bali. Actual and alleged PKI members and rooters were hunted and killed by thousands of local vigilantes and army soldiers. The purge was bridged the countrys transition to Suhartos New Order and destroyed the Communists as a political force.
In all, there were between 500,000 and 1 million people killed, with some estimates as high as 2 to 3 million. Rumor has it the CIA provided Indonesias military with a list of known and suspected Communist sympathizers.
According to a top-secret CIA report, the massacres rank as one of the worst mass murders of the 20th century, along with the Soviet purges of the 1930s, the Nazi mass murders during the Second World War, and the Maoist bloodbath of the early 1950s.
The tragedy ended with the retirement of President Soekarno and the election of Suharto as president in March 1968. There are lingering rumours and mysteries, indicating that the 30 September movement and PKI purge were plots against Soekarno. The 1965-66 killings are a central theme of the critically-acclaimed film The Act of Killing.
(brl/red)
