SOME IMPRESSIONS OF INDONESIA—

Te Ao Hou, March 1965, Page 52

SOME IMPRESSIONS OF INDONESIA— Continued from page 23. In 1942 the Dutch were defeated by the Japanese. The Japanese made greater use of Indonesians in government administration than the Dutch had done, and as the tides of war turned against them they were forced to accede more and more to the demands of the Indonesian nationalists. With the defeat of the Japanese, President Sukarno and other leaders pressed for full independence. Not all the indigenous folk were in favour of independence, in fact some fought on behalf of the Dutch. The Dutch, assisted by the British, attempted to regain control of Indonesia. The nationalists resisted, and bitter fighting followed. Eventually the nationalists triumphed, and on 17 August 1945, President Sukarno proclaimed the establishment of the Republic of Indonesia. The Revolution was against the Dutch colonialists in the first place, but it was also against the old traditional and feudalistic way of life represented by the princes and chiefs. Since 1945 the energies of the Indonesian people have been directed toward overthrowing the old feudalistic way of life, resisting colonialism in every form, and building a new nation. The tasks confronting them, then and now, are tremendous. Technicians, administrators, teachers and doctors had to be trained, for under colonialism few Indonesians had had the opportunity to acquire training. Furthermore the numerous ‘suku’ (ethnic groups) had to be welded into a single nation, and this is a tremendous task in itself.