Can Indonesia sue the Netherlands for history?

Can Indonesia sue the Netherlands for history?

Asvi Warman Adam, Historian, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, (LIPI),
Jakarta

Major celebrations are underway in the Netherlands to
commemorate the Dutch East India Company's (VOC) 400th
anniversary this year. This commemoration is especially targeted
at Holland's younger generation, to instill a sense of pride in
their history.

However, nations that have suffered under colonialism, such as
Indonesia, would surely have a different perspective on the VOC,
the trading company with political and military power.

The Indonesian Embassy in the Hague and Maluku descendants
there have expressed a strong reaction. Indonesia's State
Minister of National Development Planning Kwik Kian Gie even made
a strongly-worded speech at a recent VOC 400th anniversary
commemoration at the Hague, with Queen Beatrix in attendance. A
non governmental organization called the National Committee for
the Indonesian Nation's Dignity went to the Dutch Embassy in
Jakarta on March 20, 2002.

They demanded that the Netherlands apologize for the
oppression and severe human rights violations committed against
Indonesians, especially after Indonesia's declaration of
independence on Aug. 17, 1945; to cancel all our debt owed to the
Netherlands and Dutch institutions; and to compensate for
Indonesia's drained assets and the massacre of hundreds of
thousands of Indonesians.

Merely protesting the celebration of the VOC is easy.

In the case of a legal suit, however, careful preparation
would be needed. For instance, the above Committee cites that
"VOC's establishment in 1602 marked the beginning of an inhumane
and unjust oppression by the Dutch. It delivered riches and a
golden age to the Dutch, but brought poverty, misery and death to
the Indonesians." Moreover, "none of the serious human rights
violations committed by the Dutch have ever been investigated by
an international tribunal."

The criteria and data on the wealth and poverty brought about
by the Dutch must be supported by comprehensive and accurate
figures. There should also be a clear standard and evidence of
the heavy violence and violations committed by Dutch soldiers.

According to the scholar Henk Schulte Nordholt, there were two
waves of violence during the colonial era. The first occurred
during the latter half of the 17th century, when the VOC
established a trade monopoly by conquering strategic regions such
as Malaka, Makassar and Banten. The second happened during the
Dutch East India administration, thanks to expansion by the
colonial army (1871-1910), which claimed some 125,000 lives.

Obviously, the evidence and surviving witnesses of all these
cases have grown extremely scarce. If there is any relevant
incident that may warrant a lawsuit, that would be the case of
Capt. Raymond Westerling, who allegedly caused the death of
15,000 to 40,000 people in South Sulawesi. A review of the victim
count is still possible. The father of senior historian Anhar
Gonggong was among those killed.

An interesting item would be the report made by a Dutch
historian, Jan Bank. Entitled De Excessennota (1995), it was
written under the supervision of an inter-departmental commission
(the Netherlands' Departments of Defense, Home Affairs, Justice,
Foreign Affairs, Education and Science).

The report, as quoted from Mestika Zed's book published this
year, presents the "excesses" related to the thousands of war
crimes committed by Dutch civil and military officers between
1946 and 1950. All kinds of violations are listed, from neglect
of professional responsibility, abuse of military authority,
threats of violence, pillage, rape, break-in of people's homes,
torture and murder.

The war crimes took place in different locations in Indonesia,
and the report is backed by archival sources. The rape case of a
woman arrested by two members of the Dutch military intelligence
(NEFIS) in Lubuk Alung, West Sumatra on May 28, 1948 was taken
from a report to the NEFIS Director in Batavia dated June 2,
1948. Also included are 15 thick bundles of clippings, containing
daily news and bulletins, including those from the Netherlands'
official news agency Algemene Nederlands Persbureau.

Let us compare the above case to the lawsuit filed in the
United States over the past slavery of African-Americans.

On March 26, 2002, Deadria Farmer-Paellmann, an attorney,
entered a lawsuit at the federal court of Brooklyn, New York. The
36-year-old African-American woman demands a compensation of
US$1.4 trillion from three major companies: Aetna Life Insurance,
the train operator CSX and Fleet Boston Financial Corp.

Between 1790 and 1860 (slavery was not officially eliminated
in the U.S. until 1865), the U.S. economy benefited by $40
million thanks to the eight million unpaid workers. The present
value of such an amount is $1.4 trillion.

The three companies are deemed to have caused suffering for
hundreds of thousands of African-Americans hundreds of years ago.
Aetna is accused of selling life insurance for slaves to their
masters. Farmer-Paellmann managed to collect 1,852 such insurance
policies. CSX employed the slaves for their railway construction,
while Fleet Boston financed the project.

Farmer-Paellmann, a graduate from the New England School of
Law, conducted a five-year research for this case. Aetna insists
that the event took place hundreds of years ago, and as such
would be difficult to be brought to trial. Its board of directors
claim that they are not responsible since the corporate structure
underwent changes in 1980. Moreover, they have previously issued
an apology and contributed $36 million to the African-American
community.

It will not be easy to win this lawsuit, since the African-
Americans' genealogies are hard to trace. Should this lawsuit be
successful, however, the compensation would be used to improve
educational and health facilities for African-Americans.

Clearly demands of responsibility from the Dutch -- through
the mere collection of signatures -- pales in comparison to the
efforts of the above attorney. Has any data been collected about
the victims from Indonesia's side?

The conclusions here are that first, history, which used to be
linked to sociology, anthropology, psychology and literature, now
touches the areas of law and justice.

Second, the history of a nation or commemoration of a
historical event can no longer escape foreign scrutiny. A country
can no longer write her own history as she sees fit, as in the
case of Japan vs. China and South Korea.

Thirdly, a human rights perspective should be incorporated
into the curriculum of history.

Demands for apology from the Dutch can be made, of course, but
the extent of its benefit for Indonesians needs to be questioned.
A total debt write-off would surely be impossible.

However the claim of compensation is feasible. Concerned with
human rights, the Dutch government would not object to paying the
compensation. This year it has provided an assistance of $6,000
for every Jewish Dutch who was a victim of the Holocaust.

It is legitimate for Indonesia's NGOs to file a lawsuit
against the Dutch government. However, maybe 10 years from now,
there might be a similar lawsuit from Dili, the capital of East
Timor. The Indonesian government would be requested to pay war
reparations, and a few generals who so far have eluded trial
would be charged for serious human right violations in that new
state, in an international tribunal.