Indonesian Nationalism Today and in the Future

Author(s): Benedict R. O'G. Anderson

Source: Indonesia, No. 67 (Apr., 1999), pp. 1-11
Published by: Southeast Asia Program Publications at Cornell University
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3351374
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INDONESIAN NATIONALISMTODAY
AND IN THE FUTURE1
BenedictR. O'G. Anderson

misunderstood.
For thatreason this
In my experiencenationalismis frequently
two
common kinds of
I
will
remarks
begin my
by discussingbriefly
morning
a
an
of
almostuniversalin
Indonesia
as
example phenomenon
misunderstanding,
using
whichis now crawlingtoitsend.
thiscentury
is something
The firstis thatnationalism
from,ofcourse,
veryold and is inherited
it
is
that
Thus
arises
ancestors."
something
"naturally"in the
"absolutelysplendid
is something
rathernew,and today
blood and fleshofeach ofus. In fact,nationalism
old. ThefirstDeclarationofIndependence,
is littlemorethantwocenturies
proclaimed
in Philadelphiain 1776,said nota wordabout"ancestors,"indeedmade no mention
of Americans.Sukarno'sand Hatta's Declarationof Independenceon August 17,
themaniaforseeking"absolutelysplendid
1945,was essentiallysimilar.Bycontrast,
and oftenverydangerousnonsense.
rise
to
ancestors"typically
nonsense,
gives
A nicelocalexampleis PrinceDipenegoro,who in the1950swas anointedas No. 1
National Hero, as if the Prince had led a movementfor Indonesia's national
independencefromthe clutchesof Dutch colonialism.But if one looks at what the
his actualwordsabouthis politicalgoal werethat
Princehimselfsaid in his memoirs,
he intendedto "subjugate"-yes, "subjugate"-Java.The concept"Indonesia" was
whollyforeignto him (as was theidea of "freedom").Indeed we all know thatthis
neologismis verynew; it startedto becomewell knownonly
strangeGraeco-Roman
1Thisis thetextofa
on March4, 1999,intheHotelBorobudur,
as part
Jakarta,
keynote
speechpresented
ofTempo's
Italso represented
BenedictAnderson'sfirst
ofthecelebration
twenty-eighth
anniversary.
publicappearancein Indonesiasince1972.

Indonesia67 (April1999)
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BenedictR. O'G. Anderson

touse thewordin itsnamewas the

abouteightyyearsago. Theveryfirstorganization
CommunistPartyof Indonesia-in 1920 (when my motherwas already a girl of
fifteen).
is that"nation" and "state" are, if not exactly
The second misunderstanding
identical,at least like a happy husband and wife in theirrelationship.But the
historicalreality is oftenjust the opposite. Perhaps 85 percentof nationalist
movementsstartedlifeas movementsaimed againstcolonial or feudal-absolutist
states.Nationand state"got married"verylate on, and themarriagewas farfrom
always happy.The generalruleis thatthestate-or whatin mycircleof friendswe
oftencall theSpook-is mucholderthanthenation.Indonesiaonce again affordsa
fineexample.The genealogyofthestatein Indonesiagoes back to earlyseventeenthis quiteapparenteventhoughthestretch
ofitsterritory
centuryBatavia.Itscontinuity
ofIndonesiais-with theexceptionof
increasedvastlyovertime.The presentstretch
East Timor-exactlythatof theNetherlandsEast Indieswhen it completedits final
conquests of Aceh, SouthernBali, and Irian at the beginningof this century.
we shouldalwaysbearin mindthatin itslastdays,duringthe1930s,90
Furthermore,
percent-I repeat90 percent-ofits officialswere "natives."Therewere of course
and additions-duringtheRevolution,
but forthegreater
some changes--extrusions
of
the
state
the
was
continuous
with thatof the
personnel
youngRepublic's
part
first
colonial state.The
post-1950parliamentwas also fullof formercollaborators
withcolonialism,and thenew Republicanarmyalso includedplentyof soldiersand
whohad foughtagainsttheRepublicduringtheRevolution.
officers
both
(Furthermore,
GeneralNasution,creatorofthepost-revolutionary
and
General
Suharto
started
army,
In thecase ofSuharto,it
theiradultcareersas soldiersin theprewarcolonialmilitary.
is well known that he had no involvementwhateverwith the movementfor
independencein theDutchtime,but ratherjoined KNIL (KoninklijkNederlandschIndischLeger,RoyalNetherlands-Indies
and
Army),thegreatenemyofthemovement,
of
thenlaterPeta,thecreation theJapaneseoccupiers.)
In relationto thenationalterritory
thereis an ironythatGeneralSayidimanwas
to
the
first
out.
Because
the
Suhartoregimemade the1945Constitution
among
point
intosomethingsacred-thoughin factitwas drawnup in greathastein August1945
in a confusedand emergency
situation-itsdetailedspecification
of thenew nation's
borderscouldnotbe changed(forfearthiswouldundermine
itssacralcharacter).
This
meantthattheannexationof East Timor,whichlies outsidethosespecifiedborders,
was fromthe startabsolutelyunconstitutional.
Luckilyforhim,Sayidimanwas a
General,so notinmuchdangerforsayingsucha thing.
In a word:whatI have justsaid is meantmerelyas a kindofwarning.Bewareof
people who makea sacredidol oftheState,and bewareofthosewho talka lotabout
"our splendidancestors."Yourpocketis abouttobe picked.
Thenwhatreallyis nationalism?
Ifone studiesitsbriefglobalhistory,
one can say
thatit is not somethinginheritedfromthe ancientpast, but is rathera "common
And thisprojectdemandsself-sacrifice,
notthe
project"forthepresentand thefuture.
ofothers.Thisis whyitneveroccurredto thefoundersoftheindependence
sacrificing
movementthattheyhad therightto killotherIndonesians;rathertheyfeltobligedto
have the courageto be jailed, to be beatenup, and to be exiled forthe sake of the
futurehappinessand freedomoftheirfellows.

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NationalismTodayand in theFuture

theinhabitants
Nationalismariseswhen,in a certainphysicalterritory,
begin to
a commonfuture.
I
feelthattheysharea commondestiny,
as
once
Or,
wrote,theyfeel
it
boundby a deep horizontalcomradeship.
arises
and
Typically,
quickly
suddenlyin
a clearsignofitsnovelty.One can see how muchnationalism
one generation,
is tiedto
visionsand hopes forthefutureifone looksat thenamesof theearlyorganizations
thatjoined theindependencemovementin thebeginningof our century:JongJava
(YoungJava),IndonesiaMuda (YoungIndonesia),JongIslamientenbond
(League of
Young Muslims),JongMinahasa (Young Minahasa), and so on. There were no
thatcalledthemselves
Old Java,EternalBali,et cetera.Theirorientation
organizations
was to thefutureand theirsocialbasis was youth.(Even today,thepeculiarpolitical
power of studentslies in theirsocial positionas symbolsof the nation's future.)
of thosedays signaledtheirregionaloriginsnot in the
Beyondthat,theyoungsters
oftheseregionalorigins
localnationalisms,
butin theircommitting
nameofseparatist
and
common
liberation.
to a colony-wide
of
joint
project
Theypaid no mindto thefact
thatAcehnesekingshad once "colonized"thecoastalregionsof Minangkabau,that
had tried
Buginesekingshad enslavedTorajanesehillpeople,thatJavanesearistocrats
to subjugate the Sunda highlands,or that Balinese overlordshad successfully
conqueredtheislandoftheSasak.
Ifwe could go backto 1945-49and talkwiththefighters
forindependenceofthat
believe
can
be
find
it
to
thatfifty
sure
would
they
yearslater
period,you
impossible
oftheRepublic'sarmedforceswouldno longerbe defending
thecountry
thefunction
againstexternalenemies,butratheroppressingtheirown people,in thisway actually
pickingup the traditionsof the colonial military.But this is what too oftenhas
wereunawareofthepossibleconsequences
actuallyhappened.Perhapstheold-timers
ofthemarriageofnationwithState.
itsfulfillment
is
Ifnationalism
is a commonprojectforthepresentand thefuture,
In theeyes ofits
neverfinallycomplete.It mustbe struggledforin everygeneration.
parents,and theState,a babybornin Madura,say,mayalreadybe "an Indonesian,"
butthebabyherselfdoes notyetthinkthisway.Theprocesswherebyshe willbecome
and an
an Indonesian,withan Indonesianspirit,an Indonesiacommitment,
forherself
Indonesiancultureis a longone,and thereis no guaranteeofsuccess.In thisway we
an open question,and
can also see thatthe"continuity"
ofa nationis fundamentally
also a kindofwager.
rootedin
The wageris thattheidea "thefutureofIndonesia"will be sufficiently
of
the
nation
thespiritofthecountry's
each
new
candidate-member
citizens
that
legal
will be readyto set aside wherenecessarypersonalambitionsand loyaltiesforthat
grandidea. Thiswageris winnablein thelongrunonlyiftheIndonesiannation,like
othernations,is large-hearted
and broadmindedenoughto accepttherealvarietyand
of thenationalsociety(whichin Indonesia'scase numberstwo hundred
complexity
millionpeople). The modernworldhas shownus sufficient
examplesofnationsthat
have brokenup because too many of its citizenshave had shriveledheartsand
overtheirfellows.
dwarfish
minds-to saynothingofexcessivelustfordomination
WhenI was a littleboy,mymotherboughtme secondhanda children'sHistory
of
I
to
was
Literature.
first
of
this
book
devoted
remember
that
the
English
chapter
vividly

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BenedictR. O'G. Anderson

thestoryofCuchulainand TheBrownCow (actuallya bull) as recordedin thetwelfth

centuryin Old Irish (i.e. beforethe Englishlanguage existed).Why this oddity?
Because theeditionmymotherboughtwas dated about1900,whenIrelandwas still
thelocal people,rather
colonizedby theEnglish,who triedveryhardto "integrate"
theEast Timorese.Years laterI
like theway theSuhartoregimetriedto "integrate"
founda new editionofthisbook,publishedabout1930,and I was amusedto see that
Chapter1 had disappeared,becausein themeantimetheRepublicofIreland(ofwhich
I am a citizen)had achieveditsfreedom-a meretwenty-two
yearsbeforeIndonesia.
Fromthislittlestoryone can see how easy it actuallyis to create,and to eliminate,
The truthis thattodaynot
"splendidancestors"accordingto politicalcircumstances.
a singleEnglishpersonmisses"TheBrownCow." On theotherhand,mostIrishpeople
speak EnglishratherthanIrish,so thatmanycan onlyread the storyof the Brown
AndrelationsbetweenfreeIrelandand Englandtodayare
Cow in Englishtranslation.
farbetterthantheywere150yearsago,whentensofthousandsofIrishpeasantswere
forcedby colonialfamineto fleeto America.Thereis a lessonhereforIndonesiain its
relationswithEastTimor.
I mentionthislittleepisodesimplybecauseI see toomanyIndonesiansstillinclined
to thinkofIndonesiaas an "inheritance,"
notas a challengenoras a commonproject.
Whereone has inheritances,
one has inheritors,
and too oftenbitterquarrelsamong
themas to who has "rights"to the inheritance:sometimesto the point of great
violence.People who thinkthatthe "abstract"Indonesiais an "inheritance"to be
preservedat all costsmayend up doingterrible
damageto thelivingcitizensofthat
abstractgeographicalspace.
Let us taketwo veryconcreteexamplesnow muchin thenews: Aceh and Irian.
oftheindependence
movement
fromthelate-colonial
Duringthewholehistory
period
foran "independent
Aceh."During
on,no AcehneseI've heardofeverhad aspirations
theRevolution,Acehwas theonlyprovincewheretheDutchdidn'tdare comeback.
Butfarfromtakingthechanceto declarean Independent
Aceh,theAcehnesemade,on
a fullyvoluntarybasis-I want to emphasizevoluntary-hugecontributions
to the
cause in termsbothofmanpowerand economic-financial
resources.
revolutionary
They
did so because in thosedays Jogjakarta
had neitherthemeansnor any intentionof
actinglike Diponegoro,i.e. of "subjugating"Aceh. It is truethatin theearly1950s,
underDaud Beureueh,some Acehneserebelledbecause theywere upsetby certain
policies pursued by Jakarta;but the rebellionwas intendedto get these policies
changed,not to separateAceh fromIndonesia.In the 1970sAceh was peacefuland
and no one wouldthenhavebelievedthatat the
prosperousundera civiliangovernor,
end ofthenextdecade theprovincewouldbe a horror-filled
Military
OperationsZone.
di
Tiro
In thosedaysHasan
was takenseriously
byno one,givenhislongabsencefrom
thecountryand his knownpast CIA connections.
That"IndependentAceh" or "Free
Aceh" began to become suddenlypopularin thelate 1980swas because moreand
more Acehnesewere losing any hope and confidencethattheyhad a share in a
commonIndonesianproject.TheastoundinggreedoftherulersinJakarta,
and oftheir
as wellas thereplacement
oflocal-soncivilianrule
provincialminionsand errandboys,
seemed to say to the
by the militaryoriginating
veryoftenfromJava,increasingly
Acehnese: "We don't need you; what we need are your naturalresources.How
wonderfulit would be ifAceh were emptied of the Acehnese." Here was the originof

theatrocities
whichthenewspapershave recently
laidbare.

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NationalismToday and in the Future

Irian'sstoryis in manyways comparable.The OPM (OrganisasiPapua Merdeka,

theOrde Baru-whichI will fromnow
Organizationfora FreePapua) arosenotbefore
And its
on call the Orde Kropos (Dry-RotOrder)-came intobeing,but afterward.
language remainsthe Indonesian language. But the menaces and manipulations
orchestrated
by Ali Murtopoand his accomplicesto give the appearance thatall
IrianesewereobedientservantsoftheDry-RotOrderquicklyshowedthelocalpeople
not thepeople who lived there.In all
that,in theeyes of theCenter,Irianmattered,
as a primitive
theirrealdiversity,
populationnamedafter
theywerelumpedtogether
was understoodtobe saying:"Whata pitythereare
theprovince.Once againJakarta
Irianesein Irian."The people ofIrianwereneverseriouslyinvitedintothecommon
project,so it is only naturalthattheyquicklybegan to feel thattheywere being
colonized.(In passingI note thattherestillseem to be Indonesianswho thinkthat
This is a
colonialismcan only be practicedby Westernersover non-Westerners.
of
this
colonial
Out
Order
and
illusion.)
Dry-Rot
dangerous
historicallyignorant
horrors.The Legal Aid Institute'sbranchon the spot
attitudecame characteristic
recorded,forexample,underthe savage rule of GeneralAbinowo,a case wherea
had halfitsinhabitants
burnedalive in
OPM guerrillas
villagesuspectedofharboring
to
whiletheotherhalfwereforcedby thatsame military
theirhomesby themilitary,
Plannedhorrorsofthiskindwere
eat theroastedfleshoftheirfamiliesand neighbors.
inconceivableduringthe Revolution,and even in the era of the PRRI (Pemerintah
RevolusionerRepublikIndonesia,RevolutionaryGovernmentof the Republic of
show thatfor
Indonesia)2and DI (Darul Islam,Abode of Islam).3Theysufficiently
sectionsof thearmedforcesundertheDry-RotOrder,theIrianesewere simplynot
butsimply"possessions"oftheSpook.
fellow-Indonesians,
One concludesthenthattheIndependentAceh and OPM movementscame into
policies,and practicesoftheDry-RotOrder,with
beingas a reactionto thementality,
thebasic attitude:"Too bad thereare Acehnesein Acehand Irianesein Irian,"and a
view of these remotepeoples not as Indonesiansbut as "objects,""possessions,"
"servants,"and "obstacles"fortheSpook.The situationis todayveryseriousand can
onlybe remediedby a radicalchangein themindsetofthepoliticalleadersin Jakarta.
It is essentialthatAcehand Irianbe accordedgenuineand fullautonomyso thatthey
once again can feelthattheyare mastersin theirown house.Thiswill requireregular
and provincialand district
officials
and freelocalelections,
locallychosen-notchosen
will
requirelocal assembliesfromwhich"military
by theMinistryof theInterior.It
unelectedand composedof people mainlyfromWesternIndonesia,are
fractions,"
excluded.I haveno doubtthatifthesechangesoccurquicklyand genuinely,
separatist
movementswill lose theirsteam.I also have no doubtthattherewill be difficulties,
local quarrels,corruption,
and evenviolence,in parttheresiduesofthirty-three
years

of brutal and corruptDry-RotOrder rule. But theyshould be temporary,and in any

case they will pale to insignificanceby comparison with the exploitation and the
atrocitiesof the Dry-Rotera. In thismannerthe Acehnese and Irianese will once again
be invited seriously back into the common project and the deep horizontal
comradeshipfromwhichtheyshould neverhave been excluded.
2 PRRI:Thiswas thegovernment
of1957-58.
ofthe"regionalrebellions"
3 DI: An extremist
thenspreadto
Islamicrebellion
inWestandCentralJavain 1948-49,
thatoriginated
partsof Sumatraand Sulawesiin the1950sand was defeatedonlyin theearly1960s.

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BenedictR. O'G. Anderson

We should also be realisticand recognizethatgenuineautonomy,not the "fake

todayby thestatusof Special Region,will mean the
autonomy"thatis represented
ofIndonesia.Thisis completely
normal.Almostall thebig countriesin
federalization
ofvariouskinds:Canada,Brazil,theUnitedStates,
theworldhave federalinstitutions
India, Nigeria,Germany,Russia,and so on. China is the obvious exception,and I
doubt if manyIndonesiansfeelthe systemof China is one theywish to take as a
whowillshout,knee-jerk
model.I am suretherewillbe peoplein Jakarta
fashion,that
a federalIndonesiawas/is a Dutchcolonialproject:despitethe factthatthe Dutch
rolein Indonesiaforclose to halfa century.Otherswill say
have had no significant
is a foreign-inspired
schemetodismember
theunitary
federalism
Republic.Whoarethe
who would have any interest
in thisdismemberment
in thepresentpostforeigners
Cold Warworld?I can thinkofnone.Quitetheopposite.The disasterofYugoslavia
stateseager to help preventanythinglike thattragedy
has made all the important
elsewhere.
Stillothers,stuckwiththeDry-Rot
willcomplainthat
happening
mentality,
is contradictory
to the1945Constitution.
federalism
Butconstitutions
are man-made,
not god-made,and to survivein changingcircumstances
need
to be
they
constantly
If
the
American
Fathers
could
be
resurrected
would
be
adapted.
Founding
today,they
how
astonishedat
muchthedocumenttheyput together
two centuriesago has been
alteredin textand spirit.The 1945Constitution
is completelyout of date. Indeed it
was alreadyout of date in 1950,and would neverhave been restoredin 1959but for
an opportunisticalliance betweena power-hungry
militaryand an increasingly
authoritarian
PresidentSukarno.This constitution
needs,ifnot scrapping,at least a
radicaloverhaul.

Ifthe"commonproject"is tobe revivedand made a stronglivingreality,

it is also
essentialthatend be made to thepervasivepracticesof sadisticbrutality.
One could
startat thebottom.Ifone readsthememoirsofactivistswho ranafoulofthecolonial
let alone electrodesbeing
regimeone rarelyfindsmentionofbeatingsand tortures,
attachedto genitals,and thelike.But over thepast thirty
yearsthesehave become
activities
of
and
men
at
the
lowest
levels.These days,it is
"normal"
police
military
normalto beat up someonearrestedeven beforehe or she is interrogated;
and to
executeprisonerson thepretextthattheyare "attempting
to escape." Some of these
thingshappenedin the1950sand 1960s,but theywerenot"routine."Thattheyhave
becomeroutinemeansthatthosewho aresupposedtoupholdtheauthority
ofthelaw
in factviolate thislaw everyday withcompleteimpunity.This situationnot only
but tendsto corrupttheirvictimstoo.There
corruptsthemoralsofthelaw-enforcers,
are plentyof prisonerswho, seeingtheircaptorsas extortionists,
sadists,and even
to
follow
their
tend
Here
is
one
source
of
therapidrisein
executioners,
example.
major
thelast fifteen
as
yearsofa wideninggroupofbrutalizedpremanwho oftenfunction
the "left hand" of the Spook. We are all aware of how far the process of
or "gangsterization"
ofIndonesianpoliticshas gone.Politicalparties
"premanization"
have theirpreman,as do businessesand government
agencies.And the press has
notoriouspremansuch as Yorries
played its own part by more or less glorifying
AntonMedan,Yapto,Hercules,and variousothers.
Raweyai,Sumargono,

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NationalismTodayand in the Future

Buttheprocessofbrutalization
actuallystartedlongbeforethe1980s.Duringthe
even violent,quarrelsbetweenvarious
nationalistmovementtherewere frequent,
I
it
ever
within
it.
But
don't
believe
occurredto any of them that their
groups
antagonistsdeservedto be torturedor executed.Antagonistswere antagonists,not
in theirconflicts.
"animals."Therewas stillan elementofgentlemanliness
Afterthat
werecommitted
Seriousatrocities
both
in the
therewas a slow deterioration.
sides
by
Madiun Affairof 1948,in a situationof nationalemergencyand huge social and
economictensions.People had startedto see theirpoliticalenemiesnot as fellow
Indonesians, but as pawns of foreigners-NICA (Netherlands Indies Civil
CIA, NKVD (NarodnyKommissariatVnutrennikh
Administration),
Dyel, People's
and so forth.But two yearsafterMadiun, the
for
Commissariat InternalAffairs),4
wereback as normalmembersofparliament,
i.e. as
defeatedparty,theCommunists,
fellowIndonesiansonceagain.
Thebig changecamein 1965-66.And so longas "65-66"is notfacedup to,openly
and honestly,by livingIndonesians,theprocessesof dry-rotand brutalizationwill
continue.Today I do not intendto go into "65-66"in any detail. I wish only to
underlinetwovitalpoints.
1. On October4, 1965,Suhartoand his groupreceiveda detailedautopsycarried
out by militaryand civilianforensicexpertson thebodies of the generalskilledon
October1. The reportmade itquiteclearthatthegeneralshad been shotto death,and
theircorpsesfurther
damagedby beingdumpeddown a deep well at LubangBuaya.
But on October6, themass media,whollycontrolledby Suhartoforces,launcheda
campaignto the effectthatthe generalshad had theireyes gouged out and their
genitalsseveredby sadisticGerwaniwomen.Thislyingcampaignwas carriedout in
cold blood bypeoplewho knewexactlywhattheyweredoing.Ifyou wishto read an
fictionalportraitof theseicy sadists,you can do no betterthanread
extraordinary
Putu Wijaya'sextraordinary
novel,Nyali. The propagandacampaigndid morethan
ofhysteria
acrossIndonesiawhichmade itpossible
to createtheatmosphere
anything
in thefollowing
monthsformorethanhalfa millionmembersofthecommonprojectto
be murderedin themosthorribleways,completelyoutsidethelaw, and withnot a
singlemurderereverbroughtbeforea courtofjustice.One could put it bluntlythis
oftheso-calledNew Orderwas a mountainofskeletons.
way: thatthefoundation
2. The consequencesare feltto thisveryday.Leavingtheplannersoftheatrocities
aside-i.e. Suhartoand his circle-one can ask the following.Has Abdurahman
Wahid,famousforhis speechesin supportofhumanrightsand religioustolerance,
forhis NU (NahdlatulUlama) forthe tensof thousandsof
ever asked forgiveness
in 65-66?5I believetheansweris no. Has Megawati,who
murdered
Ansor
by
people
forherPNI-PDI (Partai
regardsherselfas a victimofSuharto,everasked forgiveness
Nasional Indonesia, Indonesian National Party; Partai Demokrat Indonesia,

returned
toIndonesiaintheautumnof1945,theyhad no military
4 NICA: WhentheDutchcolonialists
unitsavailableandweredependent
on British
forcesundertheoverallcommandofLouis
imperial
Mountbatten.
Hencetheycouldcreateonlya "CivilAdministration,"
whichlasteduntillate1946when
TheHaguehad sentsufficient
to
those
under
London's
command.
NKVD:Theofficial
name
troops replace
oftheSovietUnion'ssecretpolicefrom1934-46,
ofthelegendary
descendant
Chekaand ancestor
ofthe
KGB.
5 Ansor:YoutharmoftheNU.

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BenedictR. O'G. Anderson

IndonesianDemocraticParty)6forthetensofthousands(includingleftwing
members
ofthePNI itself)murderedby PNI youthgangs,especiallyin Bali?Again,I thinkthe
answeris no. Have well-knownCatholicsoftheNew Ordersuch as BennyMurdani,
Frans Seda, Liem Bian-kie,and HarryTjan Silalahiever asked forgivenessforthe
The former
ofyoungCatholicsin theslaughter?
Againno. The Protestants?
complicity
PSI (Partai Sosialis Indonesia,IndonesianSocialistParty)?7The intellectuals?The
academicians?Almostnota word.I remember
onlymymuch-missed
youngcolleague
Soe Hok-giehavingthecouragealreadyin 1967to speak out on theissue. Fromthis
a
angle we can see thatvirtuallytheentire"opposition"todayis notfundamentally
and
to
the
Indonesia
wish
to
will
rebuild
real opposition the Dry-RotOrder,
they
stillhave a mountainofskeletonsburiedin itscellars.All continueto evade
therefore
themselves
committing
facingthefactsoftheirown politicalpasts,askingforgiveness,
neverto permitanythinglike 65-66to happen again,and welcomingback intothe
commonprojectthemiserablerelicsand descendantsofthevictimsof65-66.And in
talkabouta "national
school,childrencontinueto be fobbedoffwithvague historical
trauma"or "nationaltragedy"-period!
The horrorof 1965-66,when millionsof Indonesianswere regardedby other
could and shouldbe treatedwiththe
Indonesiansas animalsor devils,who therefore
has had manyfateful
worstsadismand outsideall legality,
consequencesdown to our
own time.A culturehas developedin themilitary
accordingto whichin "security"
matterseveryelementof humandecencycan be set aside, withcompleteimpunity:
provided"theboss" gives themtheorders.The politicalconsequencesfirstbecame
clearlyevidentin theprocessof the"annexation"ofEast Timorafter1975.It is wellknownnow thatbetween1977and 1980aboutone thirdof theentirepopulationof
theformer
burnedby napalm,
Portuguesecolonydied unnaturally-killed
by gunfire,
or
victims
of
starvedto deathin "resettlement
the
camps,"
contagiousdiseaseswhich
inhuman
under
conditions.
Torture
became standard
spread rapidly
occupation
operatingprocedure,to say nothingofrapesand executions.Ifwe appliedtheabove
percentageto theJavanese,itwould meantheunnaturaldeathsofat least25 million
A vastcrime?Can anyonedoubtit?
Absolutely.
people in threeyears.Terrifying?
of"welcomingour
Whydid ithappen?No one shouldbe deceivedbytherhetoric
comradesintotheembraceofIbu Pertiwi"oroftheEastTimoresegladlyand willingly
joiningthecommonproject.The operationsin EastTimor,forthemostpartconcealed
fromtheIndonesiannation,werea "subjugating"
projectoftheSpookin directlineal
descentfromvan Heutsz, Diponegoro,and his farmorebrutalpredecessorSultan
aboutthe"ingratitude"
ofthe
Agung.How oftenone heardhighofficials
complaining
EastTimoreseforall thegood thingsJakarta
had broughtthem.I am surenoneofthese
officialswere aware thattheywere simplyechoingtheir"splendidDutch colonial
ancestors,"who were accustomed to grumbleat the "ingratitude"of the (Indonesian)
natives forall the benefitsthatcolonial rusten ordeas well as opbouw(pembangunan!)
had broughtthem.(To feeltheforceof this,one should imaginehow weird it would be

ifa highofficial
theJavaneseorSundanesehave
complainedpubliclyathowungrateful
6 ThePNI was themajorsecularnationalist
eraup
partyofIndonesianpoliticsfromtheRevolutionary
untiltheearly1970s,whenitwas compelledtomergewithothernon-Islamic
partiesintothePDI.
7 ThePSI was formed
in 1948,thenforcibly
dissolvedbytheSukarnoregimein 1960on groundsof
inthePRRI.
implication

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NationalismTodayand in the Future

theDry-Rot
been forthebenefits
Orderbroughtthem.)In EastTimor,too,one getsthe
of
"Too bad thereareEastTimoresein East
overwhelming
impression Spookthinking:
Timor."
Fromthelate 1970sto thelate 1980s,East Timorwas a regionclosed not onlyto
butevento mostIndonesians(who had to have a specialpass to go there).
foreigners,
Thus it becamea regionwhere"anythingwent."Kopassus becamethepioneerand
and executionswere "normal."
Rapes,tortures,
exemplarforeverykindof atrocity.
there
hooded
started
too,
gangstersworkingas thelefthand of theSpook.
"Ninjas"
this
culture"
leakedoutintotherestofIndonesia.We saw itin
Overtime, "occupation
the mass murdersengineeredby Suharto,Murdani,and Kopassus in the petrus
campaignof1983.Fromthereitmovedto Aceh,Lampung,Irian,and elsewhere.Once
peacefulregionsbecame "troubled,"not by theirown will,but because theywere
"troubled"by the agentsof the Spectre.Thinkof it thisway: if we simplytryto
in thecourseof
or unnaturally
estimatethetotalnumberofpeoplewho died violently
theDry-RotOrderera-and leave aside themaimed,thepsychologically
broken,the
a
at
least
and
so
we
make
list
as
follows:
1965-66,
on,
500,000;East
might
orphaned,
Irian
At
Aceh
Timor,200,000;petrus7,000;
perhaps3,000;
perhaps7,000. least three
quartersofa millionpeople,putativemembersofthecommonprojecteveryone.Ifyou
thinkaboutthis,youwillbetterunderstand
whyI can onlyshakemyhead in disbelief
at theway thatthe"opposition"todaydemandsthatSuhartoand his familybe called
to accountforstealingso muchmoney(perhapsit thinksofit as "its" money?),and
plannedmurder
largelyturnsa blindeyetocrimesa thousandtimesworse:systematic,
ofthearchipelago.
on a scaleneverbeforeseenin thehistory
And now a further
ironictwist.PresidentHabibiehas beenreviledand abused as
Suharto'sanakmasand pawn. But aside fromfreeingthepress,and releasingmost
he has had thereal courageto decide to put an end to his former
politicalprisoners,
master's"subjugating"projectin East Timor.Meanwhile,withthe veryhonorable
shownthatthey
exceptionofAmienRais,other"opposition"leadershave sufficiently
stilllivein themoraldarknessoftheDry-Rotera.The mostshamefulthingis thatthe
and effectively
imprisonedfor
daughterof Sukarno-who was deposed,humiliated,
life by Suharto,and who, nota bene,never claimed that East Timor was part of
Indonesia-has publiclydefendedSuharto'ssubjugationproject.This is a greatpity.
One feels,readingher words,thatit is no Megawatispeaking,merelya Miniwati.
Underthelonghangingtendrilsofthebanyantreeonlydwarfish,
moldyplantscan
grow.
Whatis to be done?We see todaythatthereare a greatmanyorganizationsand
for
some local, some foreign,some combined,whichwork effectively
institutions,
"humanrights"in Indonesia.Thisis as it shouldbe. Whatwe do notsee is anything
comparableworkingfortherights,not of humanbeingsas such,but of Indonesian
humanbeings.WhatI meanis therightofthosepeople,all ofthem,fatedtobe bornon
Indonesiansoil in thetimeoftheRepublic,to participate
voluntarily,
enthusiastically,
equally, and withoutfearin the commonprojectof Indonesiannationalism.Put
conversely,theirrightnot to be treatedas animals,devils,serfs,or thepropertyof
otherIndonesians.These "Indonesianhumanrights"can onlybe struggledforand
realizedby Indonesiansthemselves.
Unlessthisstruggleis carriedon sincerely
and on

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10

BenedictR. O'G. Anderson

a verywide scale,thefutureoftheprojectis dark.Ifone startswith:"Too bad there

are Acehnesein Aceh,"itis easyenoughto moveon to:Too bad thereareCatholicsin
Flores. Too bad there are Chinese in Semarang. Too bad there are Dayaks in
Kalimantan.Logically:Too bad thereareJavanesein Java.Outsidethelogic,onlythe
in
Becauseit is in Jakarta,
people in Jakarta."
impossible:"Too bad thereare Jakarta
its ruling class and its complicitmiddle class that this "Too bad ...

entrenched.

" mentalityis

In thepressand on theInternet
we read a good deal aboutreformasi
(reform)and
once in a whileeven "revolution."Fine,so longas thesewordsare meantseriously
But in addition,I believein (and hope for)a real revivalof the
and disinterestedly.
commonprojectwhichwas initiatedalmosta hundredyearsago. A greatprojectof
thiskindtendsto producegreatmenand women.Dr. Soetomo,Natsir,Tan Malaka,
Sjahrir,Yap ThiamHing,Kartini,Haji Misbach,Sukarno,Sjauw Giok Tjan,Chairil
Anwar,SuwarsihDjojopoespito,Sudirman,Roem,PramoedyaAnantaToer,Hatta,
Mas Marco,HasjimAnsjari,Sudisman,ArmijnPane,Haji Dahlan,and so manyothers
came out ofthatera.How sad it is to comparethosetimeswiththepresent.Overthe
who visit
past dozen yearsI have been accustomedto askingIndonesianyoungsters
Cornellor come to studytherethissimplequestion:Who in Indonesiatodaydo you
admireand look up to?The commonresponseis, first,
bewilderment
at thequestion,
ofthehead,and finallya hesitant... Iwan Fals. Isn'tthisrather
thena longscratching
I
mean
thateveryonecan or shouldbecomea greatman or woman.
don't
terrifying?
ButI thinkthateverymanand womancan decidenottobe a dwarf.
A revivalof trulynationallifewill requirea totaloverhaulof thegovernmental
ofregional(notethnic)autonomy.
Itwillalso require
system,
especiallyin thedirection
thegrowthofa healthyand gentlemanly
and
ofpolitical
politicalculture, elimination
sadismand gangsterism.
It willalso need love,truelove,fornationalinstitutions.
Let
me hereofferonlyone examplewhichis close to myheartas a teacher.It is generally
has beenin a longdeclineat least
recognizedthatthequalityofIndonesia'suniversities
sincetheridiculousDaud Yusuf'sCampusNormalization
policyofthelate 1970s.We
knowthelitany:professors
toobusywithmoneyedmake-work
governmental
projects,
and real-estatespeculationto teachtheirstudentsseriously.Students
consultancies,
who have made a culture out of cheating.Wretchedlibraries. Corrupt and
authoritarian
bureaucracies-andso on.One reasonforthisdeclinewhichis
university
rarelymentionedis the antinationalattitudeof the ruling class and also of a
substantialpartofthedependentmiddleclass,who send theirchildrento expensive
international
schoolsin Indonesiaor to stillmoreexpensivecollegesand universities
overseas. This trend means that in the eyes of these people Indonesia's own
universitiesare reallyfor"second class" citizens,who don't have the rightbank
accountsor connections.
As such,who caresiftheygo to pot?I sometimesdreamof
in
a
ban
to
all studyabroad, exceptat the MA or PhD level, for
being
position
Indonesiansfora recuperation
periodoftenyears.Iftherulingclass had to send its
childrento Indonesianuniversities,
perhapstheirconditionwould startto improve.
Butofcoursethisis an idle dream.
I putforward
theslogan"Long
Finally,in a bookI recently
published,half-jokingly
Live Shame!" Whyso? Because I thinkthatno one can be a truenationalistwho is
commitscrimes,
incapable of feeling"ashamed" if his or her state/government

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NationalismToday and in theFuture

11

includingthoseagainsthisor herfellowcitizens.Althoughhe or she has donenothing

thatis bad,as a memberofthecommonprojecthe or she willfeelmorally
individually
in
donein thatproject'sname.DuringtheVietnamWar,a good
implicated everything
partof thepopularoppositioncame fromjust thisgood sense of shameamongthe
that"theirgovernment"
was responsiblefortheviolentdeathsof
Americancitizenry
threemillionpeople in Indochina,includinguncountednumbersof women and
children.Theyfeltashamedthat"their"presidentsJohnsonand Nixon told endless
lies to the world and to theirfellow-Americans.
They feltashamed that "their"
and betrayals.So theywentto
was
stained
lies,
cruelties,
being
by
country'shistory
workin protest-notmerelyas advocatesofuniversalhumanrights,
butas Americans
who loved thecommonAmericanproject.Thiskindofpoliticalshameis verygood
and always needed. If this sense of shame can develop healthilyin Indonesia,
Indonesianswill have the courage to face the horrorsof the Dry-Rotera, not as
"someone else's" doing,but as a commonburden.It will mean the endingof the
forso long:See No Evil,Hear No Evil,Speak of No
encouragedofficially
mentality
Evil.So please,don'tforget
mylittleslogan:LongLiveShame!

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