Indonesia Colonial Periods

An Explanation to Colonial Periods in Indonesia

If you hear the word, Indonesia's colonial periods, you would most definitely think of the Dutch and the Japanese colonising Indonesia, but do you really know much about it? Well you're in luck because this will explain all about it.

Dutch Colonial Period

When did Dutch first came to Indonesia?

The first Dutch expedition to Indonesia or the Dutch East Indies started in 1595. The expedition was led by Cornelius de Houtman, with four ships brought to the expedition and with one being the ship that contained Cornelius de Houtman himself. They reached Indonesia in 1596 after 14 months of voyage, they reached the island of Sumatra. In that same year they continued sailing until they reached the ports of Banten, which is located along the northwestern coast of Java Island, in June 23rd 1596.

How did they colonised Indonesia?

The Dutch succeeded in colonizing Indonesia by using a strategy called “adu domba”, you may be asking what is “adu domba”? It is basically a very slick and smart strategy that the Dutch into taking control Indonesia, by teaming up with a particular kingdom and since in that time many kingdoms in indonesia since long ago Indonesia were divided into different kingdoms and when the Dutch teamed up with Pakubuwono I (King Amankurat III’s uncle, King of Mataram), they together conquered Mataram and the Dutch then proceeded to do this to other kingdoms over and over again, and this caused the Javanese War. The Dutch also made a system of force cultivation and indentured labor, and this cultivation system brought the Dutch and their Indonesian allies enormous wealth.  All of this then led them to be able to successfully conquer and take control of Indonesia.

What is VOC and what was their goals?

You may have heard the name VOC right? But do you know what it is or why it existed? Well at the start of the 16th century in 1602, the Dutch East India Company or Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie (VOC) was established. Their goal was to trade with Mughal India and that is where most of Europe’s cotton and silk supply in this period came from. Then the Dutch government gave it a 21 year monopoly on the spice trade with south and southeast asian countries, and from there the company took off from there. The VOC has expanded its operations throughout countries such as India, Mauritius, South Africa, Indonesia, Taiwan, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. Towards the end of the 18th century the company became corrupt and was extremely in debt. The Dutch government eventually revoked the company’s charter and in 1799 took over its debts and possessions.

When did the Dutch colonisation end?

The Japanese declared war on the Dutch and invaded Indonesia, and from 1942-1945 the Japanese occupied Indonesia. In 1945 the Dutch then regained control over Indonesia and right after the Dutch regained control of Indonesia they declared independence against the Dutch. From 1945 to 1949 the Dutch and Indonesia fought for independence and finally in 1949 the Dutch accepted Indonesia’s independence.

Japanese Colonial Period

When did the Japanese came to Indonesia?

The Japanese colonists first arrived to Indonesia on January 10th 1942 and first invaded the province of Kalimantan (Tarakan) and Sulawesi (Manado).

How did they colonise Indonesia?

The Japanese came to Indonesia seeking with the interest of exploiting both Indonesia's economic and human resources for the Japanese war needs. They first arrived and were welcomed by the Indonesians, because they thought they would be the liberators to the Dutch rule, but instead they gradually established themselves as overlords instead of liberators. The Japanese establish Romusha which is forced labor to Indonesians leaving them to starve, work tirelessly without rest, and to die to build warfare for the Japanese. This eventually worked for the Japanese and they were able to take control of Indonesia.

When did the Japanese colonisation end?

World war II brought great hardship and hunger to Indonesia under the Japanese’s cruel rule while occupying it, the Japanese also inspired something much more to the Indonesians, nationalistic ideas. Shortly after the devastating atomic bombing in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and Japan’s surrender in World war II, Indonesia declared itself an independent country.

How did Indonesian people fight back towards the colonisation?

The Indonesian people fought back against the Dutch by declaring war on them, but in that time Indonesia was still multiple kingdoms and not by one nation, so they fought by representing each kingdom not Indonesia.Events such as the Javanese war is one of the ways Indonesians fought back against the Dutch. As for the Japanese colonisation, Indonesians used the opportunity to take back their country and declare Independence when the Japanese fled back to their country because of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and instead of fighting to represent each  kingdoms like when the Dutch colonised Indonesia, they fight to represent as one whole nation.

The reaction of Indonesian people towards colonisation

During the Dutch colonisation period, the reaction of the Indonesian people was by declaring many different wars from different kingdoms against the Dutch, such as the Javanese war and many more. As for the Japanese colonisation period, the reaction of the Indonesian people was to work together to defeat the Japanese and declare independence.