The West New Guinea Debacle

The West New Guinea Debacle
Author: C. L. M. Penders
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
Total Pages: 510
Release: 2002-07-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780824824709

This is a history which deals with the end of Dutch colonial rule, the early years of independent Indonesia, the West New Guinea question, and the emergence of Papuan nationalism. The book covers several key themes. The Indonesian Revolution (1945-1949) is treated only summarily. The book chiefly concentrates on Dutch policies and perspectives, which have so far generally been ignored in existing English-language publications. Netherlands-Indonesian relations between 1950 and 1958 are treated in depth, with a description and analysis of the struggle for power between the early, more Western-attuned and economic-rationalist cabinets, on the support of which the fate of the vast Netherlands-controlled export economy was dependent, and the masses, driven by Sukarno and the populist parties. West New Guinea and Papua nationalism began as early as the 1920s and 1930s, and by the early 1950s the Dutch had set about guiding the Papuans towards independence. This policy had to be aborted, however, with the threat of an Indonesian invasion and the unwillingness of the US to provide armed support to Dutch forces. As a result, Australia, too, was reluctantly forced to abandon the Dutch. Australia was forced to accept the inevitable. It had actively encouraged the Netherlands to hold onto West New Guinea, completed agreements on economic and social cooperation, and conducted in-depth studies about a possible Australia-Dutch defense system against Indonesian aggression. Without US military support, however, the situation became untenable. This book will be required reading for those seeking to understand the genesis of the situation in West New Guinea today, where Papuan nationalism is again in the ascendant following the recent dramatic events leading to the independence of East Timor.

The Indonesian National Revolution, 1945-1950

The Indonesian National Revolution, 1945-1950
Author: Anthony Reid
Publisher: Praeger Pub Text
Total Pages: 193
Release: 1974
Genre: History
ISBN: 9780313253768

The Indonesian revolution demands attention as a revolution, and as an important chapter in the collapse of Western colonialism. In the first place, however, it is the watershed of modern Indonesian history, and must be understood in terms of that history.

Colonial Counterinsurgency and Mass Violence

Colonial Counterinsurgency and Mass Violence
Author: Bart Luttikhuis
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 439
Release: 2018-10-24
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1317663152

Whether out of historical interest, romantic identification with the colonized or as models for contemporary counter-insurgency experts, the mass violence of insurgency and counter-insurgency in the post-war decolonization of the European empires has long exerted an intense fascination. In the main, the dramas in French Algeria and British Kenya in the 1950s have dominated the scene, overshadowing the equally violent events that unfolded in the Dutch, Belgian and Portuguese empires. Colonial counterinsurgency and mass violence is the first book in English to treat the intense conflict that occurred during the ‘Indonesian revolution’—the decolonization struggle of the Dutch East Indies between 1945 and 1949. This case is particularly significant as the first episode of post-war colonial violence, indeed one with global reverberations. International opinion was ranged against the Dutch, and the nascent United Nations condemned its euphemistically termed ‘police actions’ to reclaim the archipelago from Indonesian nationalists after defeat by the Japanese in 1942. As this book makes clear, however, intra-Indonesian violence was no less prevalent, as rival independence visions vied for control and villagers were caught between the fronts. Taking a multi-perspectival approach, eighteen authors examine the origins of the conflict as well as its representational and memory dimensions. Colonial counterinsurgency and mass violence will appeal to scholars of imperial history, mass violence and memory studies alike. This book is based on a special issue of the Journal of Genocide Research.

Indonesia's Islamic Revolution

Indonesia's Islamic Revolution
Author: Kevin W. Fogg
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 273
Release: 2020
Genre: History
ISBN: 1108487874

The decolonization of Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, was seen by up to half of the population as a religious struggle. Utilizing a combination of oral history and archival research, Kevin W. Fogg presents a new understanding of the Indonesian revolution and of Islam as a revolutionary ideology.

Science, Public Health and Nation-Building in Soekarno-Era Indonesia

Science, Public Health and Nation-Building in Soekarno-Era Indonesia
Author: Vivek Neelakantan
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2017-06-23
Genre: History
ISBN: 1443878499

In 1949, the newly-independent Indonesia inherited a health system that was devastated by three-and-a-half years of Japanese occupation and four years of revolutionary struggle against the Dutch. Additionally, the country had to cope with the resurgence of epidemic and endemic diseases. The Ministry of Health had initiated a number of symbolic public health initiatives – both during the Indonesian Revolution (1945 to 1949) and the early 1950s – resulting in a noticeable decline of mortality. These initiatives fuelled the newly-independent nation’s confidence because they demonstrated to the international community that Indonesia was capable of standing on its own feet. Unfortunately, by the mid-1950s, Indonesia’s public health program faltered due to a constellation of factors attributed to the political tensions between Java and the Outer Islands, administrative problems, corruption, and rampant inflation. The optimism that characterised the early years of independence gave way to despair. The Soekarno era could, therefore, be interpreted as the era of bold plans but unfulfilled aspirations in Indonesian public health. Based on extensive archival research and a close reading of Indonesian primary sources, this book provides a nuanced account of the inner tensions in Indonesian public health during the twentieth century – between a narrow biomedical approach that emphasised disease eradication, and a holistic approach that linked public health to practical concerns of nation-building.

Revolusi!

Revolusi!
Author: Harm Stevens
Publisher: Atlas Contact
Total Pages: 444
Release: 2022-02-17
Genre: History
ISBN: 9045045761

Revolusi! is the book accompanying the Rijksmuseum exhibition, in which the Indonesian struggle for independence is followed through the eyes of the people who were there. ‘Revolusi!’ explores the history of the Indonesian struggle for independence between 1945 and 1949. Central to this are the fighters, artists, diplomats, politicians, journalists, men, women and children who experienced the revolution first hand. Dutch and Indonesian authors show how the ideal of a free Indonesia was fervently pursued; how it was fought over, how negotiations took place, how propaganda was carried out and how the revolution changed people’s lives. In this way ‘Revolusi!’ presents a range of personal and collective experiences, told from multiple points of view: from Indonesian and Dutch perspectives as well as those of the groups and individuals in between, with an eye towards the international power arena. It is published in collaboration with the Rijksmuseum. The contemporary works of art, historical objects, propaganda posters, films, photographs and archival documents that accompany these stories testify to a turbulent past.

Migration in the Time of Revolution

Migration in the Time of Revolution
Author: Taomo Zhou
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Total Pages: 351
Release: 2019-10-15
Genre: History
ISBN: 1501739956

Migration in the Time of Revolution explores the complex relationship between China and Indonesia from 1945 to 1967, during a period when citizenship, identity, and political loyalty were in flux. Taomo Zhou examines the experiences of migrants, including youths seeking an ancestral homeland they had never seen and economic refugees whose skills were unwelcome in a socialist state. Zhou argues that these migrants played an active role in shaping the diplomatic relations between Beijing and Jakarta, rather than being passive subjects of historical forces. By using newly declassified documents and oral history interviews, Migration in the Time of Revolution demonstrates how the actions and decisions of ethnic Chinese migrants were crucial in the development of post-war relations between China and Indonesia. By integrating diplomatic history with migration studies, Taomo Zhou provides a nuanced understanding of how ordinary people's lives intersected with broader political processes in Asia, offering a fresh perspective on the Cold War's social dynamics.

Indonesian Political Thinking 1945-1965

Indonesian Political Thinking 1945-1965
Author: Herbert Feith
Publisher:
Total Pages: 530
Release: 2007
Genre: Political Science
ISBN:

This collection of more than one hundred excerpts from speeches, lectures, articles, and pamphlets, most of the not previously available in English, is regarded as the principal source book on Indonesian politics for the post-revolution period of 1945-1965. Chosen to define and illuminate the country's complex issues, the selections provide a balanced, comprehensive, and well-ordered survey of Indonesian political thinking from just before independence to the fall of Sukarno. After an introduction by Herbert Feith in which he discusses the Indonesian intellectual and his place in politics, the major and minor Indonesian figures of the period express their political views and their responses to the events of the first twenty years of independence. A commentary at the beginning of each chapter supplies background material relating to the selections. Three appendixes offer brief biographies of the Indonesian authors, a glossary of unfamiliar terms, and a chronological chart. Indonesian Political Thinking, now brought back to life in Equinox Publishing's Classic Indonesia series, is a must-have resource for Indonesians and Indonesianists alike. HERBERT FEITH was professor of Politics at Monash University, Victoria, Australia. He first became familiar with Indonesian problems when he was an English Language Assistant with the Ministry of Information of the Republic of Indonesia during the 1950s. He received the MA degree from the University of Melbourne, the PhD from Cornell University, and was a Research Fellow in the Department of Pacific History, Australian National University, 1960-62. Professor Feith is author of The Decline of Constitutional Democracy in Indonesia, also a member of Equinox Publishing's Classic Indonesia series. LANCE CASTLES graduated from Melbourne University, Australia, received the MA degree from Monash University, and the PhD degree from Yale University. He is the author of Religion, Politics, and Economic Behavior in Java: The Kudus Cigarette Industry.

The British Occupation of Indonesia: 1945-1946

The British Occupation of Indonesia: 1945-1946
Author: Richard McMillan
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 318
Release: 2006-05-17
Genre: History
ISBN: 113425427X

This is the first work to systematically examine the British occupation of Indonesia after the Second World War. The occupation by British-Indian forces between 1945 and 1946 bridged the gap between the surrender of Japan and the resumption of Dutch rule, and this book is a reappraisal of the conduct on the ground of that British Occupation. Contrary to previous studies, this book demonstrates that occupation was neither exclusively pro-Dutch nor pro-Indonesian; nor was it the orderly affair portrayed in the official histories. Richard McMillan draws upon a wide range of sources previously unavailable to scholars - such as recently declassified government papers and papers in private archives; he has also carried out revealing interviews with key players. Presenting a wealth of new information, this highly original and well-written book, will appeal to scholars of European Imperialism, the Second World War, military history and the history of South and Southeast Asia. It will also be relevant to a wide range of undergraduate courses in History.