Abstract
Deadline: 1/1/2003
Event
Date & Location:
6/25 - 6/27,2003; Amsterdam
Information:
Modern Indonesia has witnessed many periods of extreme
violence. Much scholarly attention has recently been focused
on crime and community warfare during the late New Order
and post-Suharto period, but little reference has been
made to previous episodes of widespread violence. One
of the most violent and chaotic times in Indonesian history
fell in the year immediately following the demise of the
Japanese empire in the Pacific. The power vacuum following
the Japanese capitulation on 15 August 1945 gave a free
reign to disintegrating forces in Indonesian society.
The
short period of the early Indonesian revolution -- roughly
the year following the end of the Pacific War -- as extraordinary
in the sense that several events coincided. The end of
wars and the change of regimes are always tense moments
in a country's history, but the atmosphere of confusion
and anomy was heightened by the sudden disintegration
of authority. The Japanese were unable and reluctant to
maintain order, Allied troops had limited power base,
and Dutch forces were slow in coming. In this power vacuum
Sukarno and Hatta proclaimed the independent Republic
of Indonesia on 17 August 1945, but Republican authority
was inadequate and often contested.
The
early revolution stands out as an exceptional and complex
episode of violence, but has generally been analysed as
a political process. The sudden and fierce outbursts of
violence after mid-August 1945 in many regions and cities
in Indonesia have commonly been interpreted in terms of
national politics: Indonesian nationalists fighting for
their independence against the colonial powers, and the
Japanese, British and (increasingly) Dutch forces trying
to maintain or restore colonial order. But there was more
than the option between return to the colonial power or
fighting for the Indonesian Republic. Apart from the political
struggle led by pemuda nationalists, the early revolution
witnessed a sudden outbreak of social, ethnic and ideological
strife. Together with a booming criminality, a tendency
inherent to revolutions, this was the recipe for the total
chaos in which people of all nationalities and ethnicities
found themselves. Order collapsed. An atmosphere of ear
and uncertainty prevailed.
Focusing
on this one long year between mid-1945 to mid-1946, the
conference aims to chart the nature of and motives for
violence and the range of options of individuals and groups
at the local level. The research and the workshop will
in particular be concerned with the different perspectives
and experiences of various peoples and groups involved,
with an emphasis on the three nationalities most profoundly
involved: Indonesians, Japanese and Dutch. The aim of
the conference is to create a clearer view of the complexities
of this period, when the post-war world was taking shape
and the individual Indonesians, Japanese and Dutch were
forced to adapt to the swiftly changing circumstances
and rethink their expectations and world views. By so
doing, the interpretation of the early revolution will
be stripped of its national content that has given this
episode a deterministic and highly schematized character.
Themes:
Three main themes will be at the heart of the conference:
violence, loyalties and personal experiences. By concentrating
on the interface of the three themes, we aim at recovering
some sense of the uncertainties of this most chaotic and
decisive year in Indonesia's history.
Violence
as catalyst of choices:
The early revolution triggered off a large array of violence.
The nationalist struggle mixed with banditry, revenge
and retaliation, social revolution, and ethnic violence.
Ethnic tensions were rife, but are a grossly neglected
theme in the stories of the early revolution. Chinese
and Dutch were targeted by revolutionaries, robbers and
other people acting on impulse. Chinese stores were plundered
and Europeans, in particular the Indo-Dutch community,
were intimidated, molested and murdered. Indonesian nationalist
military put a part of the European community in Republican
camps. Though recent research shows this was done for
their protection, many Europeans considered themselves
prisoners and hostages. But Europeans and Chinese were
not the only targets of violence: other ethnic communities,
loyalist groups, representatives of the old order, and
adherents of other persuasions have frequently fallen
victim to acts of fierce violence too.
Loyalty
and option:
The
early revolution was a period of great uncertainty and
fear, but also of anticipation and expectation. The people
who became willingly or unwillingly involved in the events
of the early revolution were forced to make choices. Resorting
to violence entails making choices, for instance that
of taking up arms and choosing a target. On the receiving
end, the threat or experience of violence forces people
to seek protection or take sides, or at least it stimulates
identification. Also material circumstances could play
a role in making choices. The individual and communal
loyalties were directed by the nature of the events, the
social make-up of a locality, and could be expressed in
ethnic, class, political or ideological terms. This act
of choice or state of indecisiveness will be explicitly
addressed by the conference. The issues of option and
loyalty also extend to the communities of Japanese and
(Indo-)Dutch in Indonesia. Taken by surprise by the events,
they too had to assess their own position in the political
struggle. An estimated number of 2000 Japanese for example
chose to fight on the side of the Indonesians instead
of following Allied and indirect imperial orders.
Personal
choices and strategies:
The social complexities of the early revolution can best
be analysed by focusing on individual experiences. Personal
documents and interviews are of great value for assessing
the reactions, coping mechanisms and relevant option range
of the people involved.
General
directions/line of approach:
Researchers are invited to present papers on one or more
of the themes mentioned above, dealing with issues of
identity, option and violence. They should preferably
deal with events at the local level, or use personal documents
or interviews as the main source. The conference aims
to represent different regions in Indonesia. We prefer
contributions based on original research. The organizers
will decide whether to accept incoming proposals for the
conference according to the above-mentioned directions.
The language of the conference is English.
Publication:
The aim is to publish the proceedings in English with
an international publishing house.
The
conference is part of the research programme "Lasting
Attachments: Personal orientations and national perspectives
on colonialism and conflict in Indonesia, 1930s - 1950s",
carried out by the Netherlands Institute for War Documentation.
Submission
Guidelines / Information:
Time schedule:
1 January 2003: Title and abstract (max. 500 words)
1 February 2003: Confirmation on
acceptance of the paper
15 May 2003: Submission of paper (max. 15-20 pages A4
paper)
25, 26, 27 June 2003: conference
1 August 2003: Submission article for publication
Please
send your proposals of a maximum of 500 words to the address
below before 1 January, 2003. You will receive notification
of acceptance in early February. Due to a restricted budget,
travel and accommodation costs can only partly be reimbursed.
For
more information, please contact:
Mariska Heijmans
Netherlands Institute for War Documentation
Herengracht 380
1016 CJ Amsterdam
phone: (0031-0)20-5233855
fax: (0031-0)20-5233888
email: m.heijmans@niod.knaw.nl
Contact:
Mariska
Heijmans
Netherlands Institute for War Documentation
Herengracht 380
1016 CJ Amsterdam
phone: (0031-0)20-5233855
fax: (0031-0)20-5233888
email: m.heijmans@niod.knaw.nl
