Live on two and a half cents a day?<\/p>\n
From Surabaya Post<\/p>\n
After a series of unhealthy speculative acts on Wall Street
\n(the New York Stock Exchange), the share price index plummeted on
\nSept. 24, 1929, a situation known in economics texts as Black
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
Soon after, the financial and economic crisis spread almost
\nall over the world, including Indonesia, which was then known as
\nthe Dutch Indies. The Indonesians called this period the age of
\nmeleset (malaise). The Dutch colonial rulers were forced to
\nimplement massive economizing within every sector, including, of
\ncourse, its revenue and expenditure budget.<\/p>\n
The effects of this Great Depression can be read in books by,
\namong others, Sumitro Djojohadikusumo (Het Volkscredietwezen In
\nDe Depressie), Oei Tjong Bo (Niederlandisch Indien Eien
\nWirtscahftsstudie) and Neytozell de Wilde (The Netherlands Indies
\nDuring the Depression).<\/p>\n
To find out the impact of the economic recession on the
\npeople's economy, the Dutch Indies administration conducted, in
\nthe thirties, a survey on the daily necessities of Indonesians.
\nThe village taken as the sample was Kutawinangun in Kutoarjo
\nregency, Central Java. The result of the survey, announced during
\nthe session of the Raad van Indie (similar to the present Supreme
\nAdvisory Council), said among other things: "It turns out that
\nnow (in 1931) an (Indonesian) adult can live on just two and a
\nhalf cents a day."<\/p>\n
The value of two and a half cents, locally known as sebenggol
\nin that year (1931) was worth Rp 750 at present. In 1921, long
\nbefore the Great Depression, a similar survey was also conducted.
\nThe result was reported as Huenderrapport, titled Overzicht Van
\nDe Economische Toesland Der Inheemsche Bevolking Van Java En
\nMadoera, Den Haag, 1921.<\/p>\n
It was said in this report that, at that time, the Javanese
\nand the Madurese could live on only 8 cents a day, a bigger
\namount than that referred to in the findings of the Kutawinangun
\nsurvey.<\/p>\n
After reading the Kutawinangun report, Bung Karno, the popular
\nname of Indonesia's first president Sukarno, could not accept it.
\nHe said, in his writing titled Enough for Indonesians to Earn
\nonly Two and a Half Cents A day? (published in Under the Banner
\nof the Revolution, Volume 1, 1963, pp 177-178), that there was a
\nbig difference between the word "enough", that came from the
\ncolonial ruler, and the expression "had to" that he himself used.<\/p>\n
When Bung Karno was jailed in Banceuy and Sukamiskin (1929-
\n1931), the budget for an inmate was set at 18 cents a day and
\nlater cut to 14 cents a day. Clearly, the people had a worse lot
\nthan the inmates because only two and a half cents a day would be
\nenough for them.<\/p>\n
Perhaps this Kutawinangun report was used as a pretext to
\nslash the salaries of the civil servants. It came as no surprise
\nthat social unrest ensued, among others the mutiny on De Zeven
\nProvincien, on Feb. 5, 1933 (John Ingleson: "Road to Exile - The
\nIndonesian Nationalist Movement 1927-1934", 1980, p. 208).<\/p>\n
Despite the harsh criticisms leveled against him, the governor
\ngeneral did not budge from his reactionary stance. Instead, he
\napplied greater pressure on Indonesian political parties.<\/p>\n
Haughtily, he said: The Dutch have been in the Dutch Indies
\nfor 300 years and will be here for another 300 years with the use
\nof single-edged sabers and whiplashes. (G. Moedjanto: Indonesia
\nin 20th Century, Vol I, 1974, p. 58).<\/p>\n
Soon after this de Jonge resorted to exorbitante rechten, the
\nextraordinary rights of the governor general to exile people
\nconsidered harmful to the Dutch Indies administration. So, Bung
\nKarno, Bung Hatta and Bung Syahrir were forcefully moved out of
\nthe Indonesian political arena. Bung Karno was exiled to Endeh,
\nBengkulu, while Bung Hatta and Bung Sjahrir were sent to Boven
\nDigul before being moved to Bandaneira. They were set free only
\nwhen Japan occupied Indonesia in 1942.<\/p>\n
JOHN ISKANDAR<\/p>\n
Surabaya<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/live-on-two-and-a-half-cents-a-day-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }