Debunking Dutch colonialism

By Onghokham

JAKARTA (JP): It is perhaps a good idea to do some reminiscing on colonial history on the occasion of the Dutch Queen's visit to Indonesia.

It is at least a good idea for one in his early 60s and once a subject of the late Queen Wilhelmina, queen Beatrix's grandmother, to dwell upon it. Perhaps it can help put several things right.

True historians squirm in all directions to hide our embarrassment when high functionaries -- especially ministers -- deal with Indonesian history and especially colonialist statistics when speaking at the multitude of ceremonies commemorating 50 years of independence.

We are told that Dutch colonialism lasted 350 years or that there had been a 350-year struggle against it.

We also misname our resistance the "revolution" and not just the "rebellion" or even the "struggle" against colonialism.

Among historians, national and international, it has long been agreed that 350 years of Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia is a myth. It started as a political slogan and is historically false.

Every time we historians hear it mentioned, as my fellow historian Dr. Taufiq Abdullah put it so elegantly, we get a stomach ache and have to air our opinions.

The story of 350 years of Dutch colonialism was started by the Dutch themselves. The most notorious statement on it was by Governor-General J.B. de Jonge in 1933.

British journalist and intelligence agent Bruce Lockhardt interviewed the Dutch Viceroy about how long Dutch rule over the East Indies colonies would last (British India was in British calculations almost coming to an end).

Dapperly, de Jonge answered something like "well for another 350 years, if necessary by sword and stick." He certainly was not prophetic.

Another 350 years of colonialism meant of course for eternity, something supernatural, something created by higher supreme beings.

Even old Indonesian empires, those of Sriwijaya and Majapahit, were in colonial historiography (Stapel) described as predecessors of the Netherlands Indies Empires. As if these old traditional empires had any concept of boundary, territorial control and others which of course didn't exist then.

Former colonial states and even modern states arising from traditional states are just continuities. In fact the colonial state's impact is very heavy, especially on what one historian calls the "cradle of colonialism" -- Java. This is Java's burden and causes its ambivalent attitude to colonialism and myth- shrouded histories.

Even in the cradle of colonialism, real colonialism did not start until 1830 when almost all Java was annexed by the Dutch except for the principalities which were put under heavy tutelage and the cultivation system making Java a colonial plantation was begun.

The origins of Dutch power in Java started much earlier though. It started around 1678 when the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) intervened for the first time into the civil wars of Java's Mataram monarchy on the side of its legitimate king against rebel vassals.

The VOC then had to intervene more often and every time Mataram had to pay, making it practically the first Asian monarchy burdened with a huge foreign debt. Finally, in 1755, the Mataram monarchy was split into several kratons; Surakarta and Yogyakarta and into two others the Mangkunegara and Paku-Alam.

VOC dominance over Javanese politics became the realpolitik of that period. From 1825 to 1830 was the last great Java rebellion led by Prince Dipenogoro of the Yogyakarta court. He fought, as usual, against the Yogyakarta establishment, but not so much against the Dutch. They, however, had to intervene again.

Indonesian history books will tell you of a struggle of 350 years against Dutch dominance and colonialism. However, seen in its real context, historians have long agreed that Dutch colonialism was much more a result of treaties with Indonesian princes rather than wars.

Colonialism was accepted by Indonesians with a few exceptions, like in Aceh and Bali. It was the same as with the growth of colonialism in India. Colonial rule was accepted by the Indian elite as well as the collapsing empires of the Moguls and the Mataram.

Vietnam, Afghanistan and Indonesia in the post 1945 period proved that if foreign dominance is rejected by its "victims", liberty can be achieved however mighty the foreign adversaries were.

Java formed a good tax basis for the expansion of the Dutch East Indies over what was known as the Outer Territories. Java had large fertile plains to maintain a large taxable peasant population.

The House of Orange have been the ruling dynasty in the Netherlands for some four centuries. Not always as monarchs but also as Stadtholders. They obtained this position through inheritance and by leading the Dutch Protestant revolt against the Spanish king.

The present queen, though, descended not from the Orange Stadtholders of Holland whose line ended with the childless, King-Stadtholder William III. The present queen is from the Friesian line of the Oranges.

Princess William the IV and V were the queen's direct ancestors and they were also the first ones of the dynasty to get directly involved with the colonies as directors of the VOC.

When the French Revolution of 1789 expanded into the Netherlands, the Stadtholder's family fled to England. Napoleon then took Holland as a kingdom. Louis Napoleon, a younger brother of the emperor, became king. After Napoleon's defeat, the Oranges were restored in the Netherlands as kings of the Kingdom the Netherlands.

The Netherlands' first king, William I (1815-1840), also called the Merchant-King because of his keen business interests, founded the Netherlands Trading Company (N.H.M.).

This trading company had the monopoly on colonial products and Java was turned into a huge colonial plantation producing sugar, coffee and tea. The king made the colonies into a profitable enterprise. The example of this Merchant-King inspired King Leopold II of the Belgians in his later Congo adventures.

It is rumored that the House of Orange had very good financial advisors and invested wisely, especially in oil. The House of Orange is reputedly one of the richest dynasties in the world. But it is poor when compared to some nouveau riche families, like certain Indonesian tycoons.

Queen Beatrix's visit will be the second state visit by a ruling monarch of the Netherlands to its former colony. During the long colonial history there has only been one visit by prince of Orange to the Indies.

Prince Frederik, one of the sons of William III visited the colonies on a naval expedition at the end of the last century. None of the reigning monarchs ever visited the Indies.

Traveling in those days was more difficult, especially for royalty. The pope hardly ever ventured outside of Rome until very recently. In Germany there is even a legend that if the pope travels outside Rome then the world will come to an end.

The late Queen Wilhemina, Beatrix's grandmother and longest living monarch of the Netherlands (1898-1948), could have visited the Indies or even settled here. When Holland was occupied by Nazi-Germany in May 1940, the queen, her family and government lived in exile in London. The last Governor-General suggested that she move the seat of government to the Indies.

The queen, described by Winston Churchill as the only man in the Dutch government, said that she could not stand the heat.

It was of course impossible for the queen to move her seat of government outside the center of allied warfare. She would have been accused of "defeatism" if she had fled to the colonies.

The first exchange of state visits was carried out by President Soeharto during Queen Beatrix's mother's reign. Queen Juliana came here and was a bit overwhelmed by her welcome.

She visited Indonesia again, but then as a princess after her abdication and retirement. Her husband Prince Bernhard has been a regular visitor since. Prince Claus and William Alexander (consort and crown-prince) have been here on several non-official visits.

The writer is a historian based in Jakarta.