Happy 63rd Anniversary of Indonesia Independence Day, August 17 2008








To celebrate the 63th aniversary of Indonesia's Independence day, let's take a look back to the history behind this nation.

Indonesia is an archipelagic country of 17,508 islands (6,000 inhabited) stretching along the equator in South East Asia. The country's strategic sea-lane position fostered inter-island and international trade; trade has since fundamentally shaped Indonesian history. The area is populated by peoples of various migrations, creating a diversity of cultures, ethnicities, and languages.

Of the so-called natives of Indonesia, archaeologists have speculated that the first people to populate Indonesia migrated from mainland China some 1,000 years ago and inhabited a stretch of islands along the equator, later known as Nusantara.




In 1511, the Portuguese conquered Malacca, located on the Malay peninsula, which was then still an inseparable part of Nusantara. The Dutch followed in 1512 and landed on Banten shore in Java. At first, the Dutch came more as traders under the trading umbrella of the Royal East Indies Company (Vereniging Oost Indische Compagnie, VOC). For the next two centuries, the Dutch conducted business with the natives, although in many cases the trade was not on equal terms. Often, trade was accompanied by violent pacification processes.

Then the VOC went bankrupt and the Dutch government took over the business in Nusantara (called the East Indies by the Dutch). Starting from about the mid-seventh century and lasting until the arrival of the Japanese in 1942, was the "real colonization" called "high colonialism" in literature. The period was disrupted briefly when the British took over colonial rule in 1811 to 1814. Among other things that the natives learned from colonization was statecraft based on territorial conception rather than on people.

In the early 20th century, the natives of Nusantara learned that as diverse as their ethnicities were, they could imagine themselves as a unified community. A nationalism had grown in a process that Benedict Anderson, a doyen of Indonesian studies, calls an "imagined community". During the first half of 20th century Nusantara, its people built an imaginary nation called Indonesia -- the name itself was borrowed from the West. By the end of the 1930s, it was clear that the end of Dutch colonialism in Indonesia was only a matter of time.

During World War II, 1942-1945, the Japanese occupied Indonesia. Although short-lived, the occupation enabled Indonesians to arm themselves for the very first time. Shortly after Japan's defeat in WWII, Sukarno and Hatta proclaimed Indonesia an independent state, and they became the founding fathers of the new country. The largest archipelago in the world, with over 17,000 islands -- only 3,000 of which are inhabited -- has emerged into a new Indonesia.

The Japanese Invasion and occupation during WWII ended Dutch rule, and encouraged the previously suppressed Indonesian independence movement. Two days after the surrender of Japan in August 1945, nationalist leader, Sukarno and Hatta declared independence and was appointed president. The Netherlands tried to reestablish their rule, but a bitter armed and diplomatic strugle ended in December 1949, when in the face of international pressure, the Dutch formally recognised Indonesian independence.



Important dates:

August 7 BPUPKI renames itself to PPKI: Panitia Persiapan Kemerdekaan Indonesia.

August 9 Sukarno, Hatta, and Radjiman Wediodiningrat are flown by the Japanese to Vietnam to meet with Marshal Terauchi. There they are informed of the collapse of Japanese forces, and that Japan will grant Indonesia independence on August 24.

August 14 Sukarno, Hatta, and Radjiman Wediodiningrat return to Jakarta, mistrustful of the Japanese promise.

August 15 Japan surrenders to the Allies. The Japanese army and navy still control Indonesia. Japan has agreed to return Indonesia to the Dutch.

August 16 Sukarno and Hatta are spirited away by youth leaders, including Chaerul Saleh, to Rengasdengklok at 3:00 A.M. They later return to Jakarta, meet with General Yamamoto, and spend the next night at Vice-Admiral Maeda Tadashi's residence. Sukarno and Hatta are told privately that Japan no longer has the power to make decisions regarding the future of Indonesia.

August 17 Sukarno reads the brief, succinct, and unilateral "Proklamasi"; the Declaration of Independence.

PETA forces, radical youths, and ordinary people in Jakarta organize defense of Sukarno's residence. Flyers are distributed proclaiming independence. Adam Malik sends out a shortwave announcement of the Proklamasi.

August 18 PPKI moves to form an interim government with Sukarno as President and Hatta as Vice-President.

August 18 Piagam Jakarta (Jakarta Charter) mentioning Islam among the Pancasila principles is dropped from the preamble to the new constitution.

August 18 New Republic consists of 8 provinces: Sumatra, Borneo, West Java, Central Java, East Java, Sulawesi, Maluku, and Sunda Kecil.

August 22 Japanese announce their surrender publicly in Jakarta.

Japanese forces disarm and disband Peta and Heiho. Many members of these groups have not yet heard of independence.

This is the original voice of Sukarno, the first president of Indonesia reading the Indonesia Independence Statement ( Proclamation of Independence) on August 17, 1945.

Happy 63th anniversay of Independence Day, Indonesia. We love you!