Who said colonialism was dead?
Who said colonialism was dead?
A certain sign of Indonesia's independence day's approach is
The Jakarta Post's Your Letters section bursting with missives on
the subject of colonialism. This year proves no exception.
Colonialism was a fact. Certain writers have vilified its past
practice by European nations; and its benign effects lauded by
others. Certainly truth emanates from both points of view. Yes,
the European nations extracted wealth from their colonies. In the
same stroke, they instituted superior systems of law, and
introduced the Age of Reasons to parts of the globe where
demagoguery and superstition, unfortunately, often continue to be
accepted as truth more readily than logic and observed fact.
Colonialism continues to be a fact. The old fashioned
domination of real estate by strong nations continues, curiously
more often now practiced by the formerly colonized. In our
region, glaring examples stare at us, from Tibet to East Timor.
New forms of colonialism are more subtle and insidious. They
involve the ability of supranational business conglomerates to
subvert land, labor, and resources along pathways greased by the
snake oil of free trade's brave new world. Colonialism continues
as always, the domination of the weak by the strong and cunning.
It was, therefore, interesting to read two articles in The
Jakarta Post's July 31 edition. One described ASEAN's call to
review the Universal Declaration on Human Rights to include such
oddities as "respect for authority", which one might surmise is
the right of dictators to dominate their subjects.
The second article laments the dearth of Indonesian
intellectual development, partly as a result of the political
pressure exerted on academics. Since a nation's power to
participate in geopolitical affairs rests largely with its
ability to be strong and cunning, perhaps our lack of
intellectual development is yet another Western conspiracy for
Farid Baskoro to report on.
Consider the scenario: employing some simple reverse
psychology, the West demands respect for universal human rights.
Predictably, the East rejects an intrusion on their internal
affairs and continue to crack down on labor activists,
environmentalists, and intellectuals. Intellectual development is
stifled, bright minds emigrate to freer shores. and the West
continues to dominate science and technology, preserving the
status quo.
Who said colonialism was dead?
STEPHEN G. KRECIK
Jakarta