New volume reveals 'hidden intentions'<\/p>\n
Kronik Revolusi Indonesia Jilid III (1947); By Pramoedya
\nAnanta Toer, et.al.; Kepustakaan Populer Gramedia, Jakarta (2001),
\nxxvi, 507 pp.; Rp 54,000,-<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A friend once warned me against \"the hidden
\nintention\" of the two earlier volumes (1945 and 1946) of this
\ntitle.<\/p>\n
What my friend meant was, in fact, \"the leftist\" message
\ninserted in several pages of the volumes concerning the labor
\nunions and the communists during that period.<\/p>\n
In this third volume, Kronik Revolusi Indonesia Jilid III
\n(1947) {Chronicle of the Indonesian Revolution Volume III
\n(1947)}, Pramoedya Ananta Toer, the editor of the book, is open
\nin his recognition of the elements that my friend referred to.<\/p>\n
Pramoedya, the cultural editor of Lentera, the supplement of
\n1the (now defunct) Bintang Timur daily, which was the trumpet of
\nthe (now banned) Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) in the early
\n1960s, says those disclosures went \"missing from circulation\" for
\nseveral decades.<\/p>\n
He considers this news to be important in being exposed
\nbecause news is a reflection of events.<\/p>\n
On June 9, 1947, for instance, the Central Bureau of the All-
\nIndonesian Labor Union (SOBSI), a labor wing of the communist
\nparty, was accepted as member of the World Federation of Trade
\nUnions (WFTU) in its meeting in Prague, in what was then,
\nCzechoslovakia. Indonesia was represented by two SOBSI activists,
\nSetiadjit and Oei Gee Hwat.<\/p>\n
Pramoedya points out that a chronicle is a chronological
\nrecord of a series of events and incidents in the past. \"It's
\nhistory minus opinion, (what one does is) merely putting forward
\nthe facts\", he writes in his preface.<\/p>\n
But facts are not identical to events or incidents, because it
\nis impossible to describe them \"intact\" in whatever form.<\/p>\n
\"Here we speak about subjectivity, namely that the chronicle -
\nalbeit in principle, has characteristics of objectivity - cannot
\ntake away subjectivity away from history\", the editor says.<\/p>\n
The task of a chronicle, just like history, is to give a form
\nto the past in order that its pluses and minuses are revealed.<\/p>\n
Renowned historian Ong Hok Ham in his introduction criticizes
\nthe previous two volumes for inadequate references. In the two
\nbooks, the editor only used sources (such as newspapers,
\nmagazines and books) from Indonesia and focused on events
\noccurring around Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Ong suggested that the editor use other sources such as
\ndiaries, memoirs, biographies, articles written by national
\nleaders including Adam Malik and Mohammad Hatta, as well as
\nmanuscripts published by the Rijks Geschiedkundige Publicatien in
\nHolland such as Netherlandsch-Indonesische Betrekkingen, 1945-
\n1950 (Netherlands-Indonesia Relationships, 1945-1950).<\/p>\n
However, some improvements have been made in the third volume.
\nThe editor has apparently tried to accommodate Onghokham's
\nsuggestions. The volume is richer in references and covers more
\nregions, thanks to the effort of another editor, Ediati Kamil, a
\nformer librarian at the Faculty of Letters of the University of
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, Pramoedya fails to suppress his nationalist
\nsentiments when speaking about the references included in the
\nbook. He says it is mainly from Indonesian sources, as read in
\nthe bibliography, because it is the Indonesian people who are the
\nmost concerned about Indonesian history.<\/p>\n
And because the editor of this chronicle is an Indonesian,
\n\"the Indonesian-centered inclination is unavoidable, despite the
\nfact that a chronicle should not take any side\".<\/p>\n
When composing this volume, Pramoedya has admitted to
\npredominantly using two main chronicles, namely Documenta
\nHistorica Jilid I (1953, 373 pp.) by Osman Raliby, and three
\nvolumes of Perjuangan Kemerdekaan di Aceh (Independence Struggle
\nin Aceh) by T.A. Talsya (1990).<\/p>\n
Those two books have enriched this volume with details about
\nthe province of Aceh, which was Indonesia's stronghold in the
\nstruggle against colonialism at the time.<\/p>\n
If you take the present situation of Aceh in mind, it's
\ninteresting to read that on January 15, 1947, Muslims throughout
\nAceh observed the feast for three days without a break as a plea
\nfor divine help for the safety of the fledgling republic and the
\nsafety of its soldiers fighting on the front line.<\/p>\n
There's more. The Aceh Regional Council for Defense then
\ncalled on the people of Aceh to raise funds and collect food for
\nthe front line. The Acehnese had indeed made material and
\nspiritual sacrifices for the survival of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Pramoedya notes that in literature on the history of the
\nIndonesian Revolution, only those two chronicles by Raliby and
\nTalsya are in existence.<\/p>\n
In fact, the Ministry of Information had published in 1950 a
\nchronicle entitled Beberapa Catatan: Detik dan Peristiwa 17
\nAgustus 1945 - 23 Januari 1950 (Some Notes: Moments and Events of
\nAugust 17, 1945 - January 23, 1950).<\/p>\n
Maybe Pramoedya could use this chronicle for his next volume.<\/p>\n
The editor also notes that, based on the information from Jaap
\nErkelens of Koninklijk Instituut voor Taal-, Land-, en
\nVolkenkunde, some bulletins of the Antara news agency in the
\nrevolution years of 1945-1949 are still stored at the Arsip
\nNational Republik Indonesia in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
There are at least two important events in 1947 contained in
\nthis third volume. They are the signing of the text of the
\nLinggarjati Agreement on March 25 in Jakarta, and the first clash
\nwith the Dutch that started on July 21. The press and literature
\npublished during that period was preoccupied by the two events,
\ndetails about them dominate this volume.<\/p>\n
Although there is a concern about the so-called \"hidden
\nintention\", the publication of chronicles documenting the years
\nin which the struggle for independence took place is very
\nimportant, not only to inform the younger generation about the
\narmed struggle, but also as a source of reliable reference for
\nhistorical or scientific purposes.<\/p>\n
Despite his \"leftist\" image, Pramoedya has obviously tried in
\nthis book to be objective and treat all events and actors
\nequally. (Darul Aqsha)<\/p>",
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