Republic of South Maluku
Republic of South Maluku | |
---|---|
1950–1963 | |
Motto: Mena-Muria (Ambonese Malay) " government in exile after 1966 | |
Capital | Ambon |
Common languages | |
Government | Republic under a provisional government |
President[c] | |
• 1950 | Johanis Manuhutu |
• 1950–1966 | Chris Soumokil |
• 1966–1992 | Johan Manusama |
• 1993–2010 | Frans Tutuhatunewa |
• 2010–present | John Wattilete |
Historical era | Post-colonial |
• Established | 25 April 1950 |
• Disestablished | 2 December 1963 |
• Exile | 12 April 1966 |
South Maluku, also South Moluccas, officially the Republic of South Maluku, is an unrecognised secessionist republic that originally claimed the islands of Ambon, Buru, and Seram, which currently make up the Indonesian province of Maluku.
Dutch conquest exerted colonial control across the archipelago in the 19th century, establishing a unitary administration. The borders of present-day Indonesia were formed through colonial expansion finalised in the 20th century. After the occupation by the Japanese Empire during World War II ended in 1945, nationalist leaders on Java unilaterally declared Indonesian independence. Early organised indigenous resistance came from the South Moluccas with support and aid from the Dutch government and military. The South Moluccan rebels initially clung on to an early post-colonial treaty prescribing a federal form of statehood. When that treaty, agreed between the Dutch government and the Indonesian government in December 1949, was broken, they unilaterally declared a fully independent Republic of South Maluku (RMS) in April 1950. The South Moluccan leaders based their decision on the treaty, which stipulated autonomy for each of the states of the federation.
After the defeat of the RMS on Ambon by Indonesian forces in November 1950, the self-declared government withdrew to Seram, where an armed struggle continued on until 2 December 1963. The government-in-exile moved to the Netherlands in 1966, following resistance leader and president Chris Soumokil's capture and execution by Indonesian authorities. The exiled government continues to exist, with John Wattilete as its incumbent president since April 2010. The Republic of South Maluku has been a member state of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) since 1991.[1]
History
Original settlers
The original settlers of the Moluccan Islands were similar to neighbouring islands like West Papua, East Nusa Tengarra and East Timor. They were ancestors of the Aboriginal Australians, then the ancestors of the Papuans, and lastly the Austronesian settlers from the Philippines by way of Taiwan. Like the rest of what is now Indonesia, the first settlers were Australoid. Today many Maluku tribes still are ethnically Melanesian and closely represent the original settlers, most of these are what can be considered highlander communities that live in the mountain areas. In contrast, much of the coastal areas have seen a change in the make-up of the population since the original inhabitants have often mixed with the later influx of Austronesian migrations - ultimately causing modern day Moluccans to have a varying degree of Melanesian paternal and Austronesian maternal ancestry. It is widely considered that this area was the place of origin for the Polynesian expansion, and the genetic makeup of the people, cultural and linguistic background, alongside their outrigger canoe (catamaran and trimaran) technology, only further support this.
European conquest of the South Moluccas
The Maluku Islands were the only place in the world that grew the prized spices of
Throughout much of the VOC era (17th and 18th centuries), the south Moluccans resisted Dutch dominance. The Banda Islands were only subdued after the indigenous power structure and organisation of trade and politics was destroyed with the extermination and eviction of the Bandanese population in 1621. To repress the autonomous traders of East Seram, the VOC organised ‘Hongi’ raiding expeditions with warrior bands from other south Maluku islands. During ‘Hongi’ raids, houses and vessels were burnt, cash crops were uprooted and most wealth was looted by the ‘Hongi’ warriors. Survivors who escaped had to start from scratch and, during two centuries of resistance, the East Seramese increasingly suffered impoverishment. However, their independent trading network was never completely destroyed.[3]
From 1780 to 1802, the people of Seram joined an alliance of North Moluccan, Papuan and British forces in a combined revolt. Resistance leader prince Nuku (the exiled Sultan of Tidore) established himself on Seram and aimed at uniting the North and South Moluccas under his leadership. His raiders targeted South Moluccan islands under the Dutch sphere of influence.[4] When the British left the arena in 1802 his plans were foiled and the Dutch restored their dominance.[3]
Maluku islanders staged various rebellions during the Dutch colonisation of the Indonesian archipelago in the 19th century following the collapse of the VOC. In a famous revolt on the south Maluku island Saparua, the Dutch fort was taken by the rebel leader Pattimura, a former sergeant in the army of Britain, who had ruled the islands for a short time before returning them to the Dutch in 1816. After reinforcements were sent from the colonial capital Batavia, the insurgents were captured and Pattimura was executed in 1817.
During the independence movement of Indonesia, Indonesian republicans included South Maluku as part of the independent Indonesia they declared in 1945. Indonesia's struggle to secure its independence lasted from 1945 until 1949. After international pressure, the Dutch acknowledged a federal Indonesian republic on 27 December 1949. In the first instance, the Netherlands only acknowledged the independence of Indonesia as a federation of autonomous states, of which one was South Maluku.
On 25 April 1950, demobilised ex-
South Moluccan career soldiers of the colonial army
A relatively large number of the professional soldiers serving in the
As early as 1605 armed Dutch merchantmen of the VOC captured the Portuguese fort at the location of Ambon city in the South Moluccas. It was an area already strongly influenced by the Portuguese (Portuguese family names, religion and language were common) and the Dutch developed it into the first secure base of the Dutch East India Company (VOC).
During the era of the VOC, the Moluccans were not only forced to trade with the VOC only, but also to focus solely on the production of
After the capitulation of the Imperial Japanese Army to the Allied forces, the Moluccan soldiers acted equally defiantly towards the Indonesian revolutionaries trying to fill the power vacuum left by the Japanese. Smaller scale conflicts in the
Disbanding the colonial army
During the
Invasion of Ambon
At the time of the proclamation, 1,739 KNIL troops, including 1,080 Ambonese, were stationed at Ambon. These soldiers became the backbone of the Armed Forces of RMS (APRMS). After a naval blockade by the Indonesian navy, Federal Indonesia Armed Forces (APRIS) invaded Ambon on 28 September 1950. The APRMS fled from the town of Ambon before the invading Indonesian troops had taken up positions in old Dutch fortifications in the hills overlooking the town. From here they waged guerrilla warfare. The TNI took control of northern half of the island, but were halted by fierce Ambonese resistance at the one-kilometre wide isthmus, which links the southern half. On 5 November, the city of Ambon fell to APRIS. The RMS government went to Ceram in December to continue the RMS battle in the form of a guerrilla war.
Demobilisation of the Moluccan soldiers to the Netherlands
The Dutch government finally decided to transport the remaining men and their families to the Netherlands. They were discharged on arrival and 'temporarily' housed in camps until it was possible for them to return to the Moluccan islands.[8] In this way around 12,500 persons were settled in the Netherlands, more or less against their will and certainly also against the original plans of the Dutch government. The reaction of the Dutch government to the settlement of the Moluccan soldiers was exactly the opposite of the reaction to the Indo repatriates.[9] Whereas the latter were defined as fellow-citizens who had to be integrated as quickly and as fully as possible, the Moluccans were considered to be temporary residents who had to be repatriated to Indonesia.[10] They were 'temporarily' housed in camps, mostly in rural areas and near small towns. A special agency was set up to manage all matters concerning these temporary residents, the 'Commissariaat Ambonezenzorg' (CAZ). the camps included the former Nazi transit camp Westerbork.
To deal with all kinds of daily matters the CAZ created 'representatives' in the camps who regulated the lives of the inhabitants in accordance with the rules. These representatives were (mostly) recruited from among the non-commissioned officers, who were in this way able, to a certain extent, to re-establish their status in the new circumstances. The housing situation in the camps resembled in many ways the barracks of the colonial army, where the soldiers were housed, together with their families, under the direct supervision of non-commissioned officers. This specific housing situation contributed greatly to the isolation of the Moluccan population from Dutch society. The camps, and later the neighbourhoods, became enclaves where the schools, though officially Dutch in programme and language, became exclusively Moluccan and where access to the labour market was geographically often restricted. Even when it became more and more obvious that there was no possibility to repatriate the ex-servicemen to Indonesia, the Dutch government did not formulate a radically different policy.
There was little integration from these camps into the wider Dutch population. The purported government-in-exile was not recognised by the government, but due to Dutch antipathy to Indonesian authorities, did not face serious opposition in its activities. Following the settlement of the
This situation dragged on until 1970 when the CAZ was finally dissolved and normal ministerial and other agencies became responsible. The Dutch government had at last admitted that the Moluccans were not temporary residents and that their future lay in the Netherlands. Still, in 1968 more than 80 per cent of the Moluccans were still without official citizenship, i.e.
These feelings continued and were even strengthened in the years of isolated settlement in the Netherlands. There seemed to be only one worthwhile ideal and that was the creation of the RMS. But whatever the merits of this ideal, the Moluccans in the Netherlands could do nothing to bring its realisation any nearer. Moreover, the isolated situation in the camps and neighbourhoods had given rise to a type of expressive leadership that could only manifest itself in opposing and confronting the CAZ and the Dutch in general.
South Moluccan terrorist action in the Netherlands
This situation led to growing tension and to splits within the RMS movement. The older generation of leaders of the RMS movement saw their authority challenged. Finally the crisis in the Ambonese communities exploded in a decade of violence against internal rivals and Dutch society. A series of
Second and third generation Moluccans in the Netherlands
Towards the end of this period of terrorist violence, the Dutch government had already dropped the idea that the Moluccans were temporary residents, but had not been able to create a channel of communication through which to discuss and implement policy measures that opened a way to the future. The social situation left much to be desired; school attainment was low and unemployment high. Earlier attempts to set up a communal platform for the government and Moluccan representatives had not been successful, because of antagonism within the Moluccan communities and impossible political demands made at the outset by the Moluccans. In 1976 a platform was formed where government policy measures could be discussed with representatives of the Moluccan community, the IWM (Dutch abbreviation for: Inspraakorgaan Welzijn Molukkers). In 1978 a substantial White Paper ("De Problematiek van de Molukkers in Nederland") was sent by the government to parliament. It offered measures to enhance Moluccan participation in Dutch society, in particular in the fields of education and the labour market.
The IWM has proved a valuable communication channel for communal projects. A case in point was the plan to create thousands of jobs for Moluccans in government service. The primary goal was to combat high unemployment, but a secondary goal was to open up a particular section of the labour market where Moluccans were significantly underrepresented. The recognition that employment, education and social welfare in general were important fields where the situation of the Moluccan population, and especially of the new generation, had to be improved, was a positive development. Partly because the second generation was already much more oriented to Dutch society, partly as a result of the policy of affirmative action, participation in the labour market and in the school system developed positively after 1980. Levels of educational attainment rose, unemployment levels were lower and the jobs fulfilled were also somewhat higher in scale. In general the second-generation Moluccans made a great leap forward in this period, compared to the first 'soldier generation'.[13]
The situation of the Moluccans in the Netherlands is at present remarkably different from that in 1970. Practically all Moluccans are now Dutch citizens. This makes it more difficult to give the precise number of Moluccans in the Netherlands, though research shows that there are to date about 40,000 persons who can be classified as Moluccan.[14] A majority of this population identifies itself to a certain extent with the Moluccan islands where their families once came from, but this identification seems less and less an impediment to integration in Dutch society. In this sense the Moluccans have at last become 'normal immigrants'.[15]
Notwithstanding Moluccan integration into modern Dutch society has halted terrorist radicalisation, up to the 1990s the Netherlands were reminded yearly of the traumatic side of their colonial past, when celebrations of the RMS independence declaration frequently resulted in angry sentiments or even serious rioting in the streets of the capital.[16][17]
In the 1950s and 1960s Moluccan musicians made their mark together with artists from the
21st century
Events in the Netherlands
The Indonesian ambassador to the Netherlands, Yunus Effendi Habibie, told Radio Netherlands Worldwide in 2009 that Indonesia was pleased that the exiled Moluccan government is no longer striving for an independent state. According to the ambassador, Moluccans already have autonomy, so the present situation need not be changed. He rejects full Moluccan independence. Habibie's comments come in response to a decision by the designated new president of the Moluccan government-in-exile, John Wattilete's words that an independent Moluccan state is no longer its absolute priority. Although independence is still the ultimate goal, he says he would be satisfied with a form of autonomy similar to that introduced in Aceh. "The most important thing is that Moluccans themselves are in charge."[22][23]
John Wattilete became RMS president in April 2010. He is the first to come from the second generation of Moluccans in the Netherlands and is regarded as more pragmatic than previous leaders. However one day before Indonesian President Yudhoyono's planned state visit to the Netherlands, the first such visit since 1970,[24] Wattilete issued legal proceedings to have him arrested upon entering the country. Although legal experts called this action senseless and without much chance of success, Yudhoyono cancelled his visit the next day.[25]
Events in Indonesia
The South Moluccan people are predominantly Christian, unlike most regions in Indonesia which are overwhelmingly Muslim. The South Moluccan Republic, however, was also supported by some Moluccan Muslims in the region at that time. Today the memory of the RMS and its separatist objectives still resonates in Indonesia. Moluccan Christians, during the sectarian violence of 1999–2002 in the Moluccas, were accused by Muslim groups of having independence as their goal. This accusation has been useful in galvanising Muslims to fight (Laskar Jihad), and the situation has not been aided by the fact that some diaspora Moluccan Christian groups have taken up the RMS banner.
In the Moluccas, the Malino II Accord was signed to end conflict and create peace in the Moluccas, asking Moluccans "to reject and oppose all kinds of separatist movements, among others the Republic of South Moluccas (RMS), that threaten the unity and sovereignty of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia". However, during the visit to Ambon of the Indonesian president in the summer of 2007, RMS sympathisers disturbed ceremonies by performing the Moluccan war dance and hoisting the RMS flag.[26]
Since 1999, a new organisation known as the Maluku Sovereignty Front (FKM) has operated in Ambon, stockpiling weapons and flying the RMS flag in public places. The leader of the FKM organisation, Alex Manuputty, has fled to the United States, but continues to support independence.[27]
On October 26, 2020, three activists were jailed for three years after being charged with treason for flying the RMS flag.[28]
Exile
The main stronghold of the rebellious RMS group on
During their exile parts of the RMS movement have committed terror attacks in the Netherlands. Most research argues that the attacks were caused by frustration over the lack of support from the Dutch government.[22]
The first attack took place in 1970 at the Indonesian Ambassador's house at Wassenaar, during which a Dutch policeman was shot and killed. This attack was followed up in 1975 with the hijacking of a train at
From the 1980s no such actions re-occurred.
Junus Effendi Habibie, the previous Indonesian ambassador to the Netherlands and brother to the third president of Indonesia, has said that he would do all he can to facilitate the repatriation of first generation Moluccans to their homeland, if they would stop aiming at an independent state.[30][31]
Presidents
Dr. Chris Soumokil J.D. was the RMS president in 1954 who went into hiding and led the armed guerrilla struggle on Seram island. He was only captured by the Indonesian Army in Ceram on 2 December 1962. Brought to trial before a military tribunal in Jakarta, he was sentenced to death and executed under President Suharto's rule on 12 April 1966.
The first president in exile was Prof. Johan Manusama (1966–1993).
The government-in-exile continues to exist, with Frans Tutuhatunewa M.D. as head of state (1993–2010). However it no longer advocates violent action towards either the Netherlands or Indonesia. The president in exile has said that the young generations should focus on their education and development opportunities in the Netherlands if they want to potentially support and develop the South Moluccas.
John Wattilete became RMS president in April 2010. He is the first to come from the second generation of Moluccans in the Netherlands and is regarded as more pragmatic than previous leaders.
State symbols
Flag
The RMS flag is vertical blue, white, green, red (1:1:1:6) and has proportions 2:3. It was first hoisted 2 May 1950 at 10.00 AM. Two days later the government gave the explanation of the flag. Blue symbolises the sea and loyalty, white stands for purity, peace and the white beaches, green the vegetation, and red the ancestors and blood of the people.
Coat of arms
The RMS coat of arms depicts the white Moluccan dove called 'Pombo'. The white dove is seen as a symbol of positivity and a good omen. The 'Pombo' is shown, about to start flying, the wings half opened and in its beak a peace branch, the chest tattooed with a crossed 'parang', 'salawaku' and spear.
The
Anthem
The RMS anthem is called "Maluku tanah airku", which translates to English as "Maluku my homeland," and was written by Chris Soumokil and O. Sahalessy in the Malay language, with Melanesian Moluccan words mixed in.[32]
Original text Oh Maluku, tanah airku,
|
English translation Maluku, my homeland,
|
See also
- E. U. Pupella
- List of people from Maluku Islands
- Invasion of Ambon
- Maluku sectarian conflict
- Republic of West Papua
References
- ^ "UNPO: South Moluccas". unpo.org. 25 March 2008. Retrieved 26 April 2019.
- ^ Stott, David Adam (1 June 2017). "Integration and Conflict in Indonesia's Spice Islands". The Asia-Pacific Journal. 15 (11). Retrieved 20 February 2019.
- ^ ISSN 1979-8431
- ISSN 1979-8431
- ^ "Verzetsmuseum - Stories". Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ This initiative by former KNIL officer Evert Kawilarang developed into the notorious Kopassus unit.
- ^ De plechtigheden in Djakarta bij de opheffing van het KNIL. Video footage showing the official ceremony disbanding the KNIL.
- ^ The complicated story of the disbanding of the KNIL is set out briefly here. For a more extended analysis see Manuhutu (1987); Steylen (1996: 33-63); van Amersfoort (1982: 101-8). The psychological impact of the dissolution of the KNIL on the Ambonese servicemen is described in Wittermans (1991).
- ^ The history of the Indos and their emigration from Indonesia after World War II is also reflected in interesting ways in the Dutch literature: the circumstances of the repatriation are, for instance, spiritedly evoked in the stories of Springer (2001: 179-239).
- ^ In this article the words Ambonese and Moluccans are used synonymously. This is strictly speaking not correct. The Protestant Ambonese form about 90 per cent of the Moluccans in the Netherlands and have played a decisive role. There is also a small number of Muslim Ambonese and of Moluccans from the islands of Kei and Tanimbar.
- .
- ^ Siahaya (1972) paints a good picture of the mind of a Moluccan terrorist.
- ^ Smeets, H. and Veenman, J. (2000) "Three generations of Moluccans in the Netherlands." iI Vermeulen, H. and Penninx, R. (eds), Immigrant Integration. The Dutch Case. Amsterdam: Het Spinhuis. pp. 36-63.
- ^ Beets, G., Walhout, E. and Koesoebjono, S. (2002) "Demografische ontwikkeling van de Molukse bevolkingsgroep in Nederland." Maandstatistiek van de bevolking, 50(6): 13-17.
- ^ van Amersfoort, H. (2004) "The waxing and waning of a diaspora: Moluccans in the Netherlands, 1950-2002." Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 30(1): 151-74.
- ^ "RMS demonstratie 1971". YouTube. 13 September 2007. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ "RMS Demonstration - April 25, 1995". YouTube. 4 July 2007. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ "Massada". www.massada.nu.
- ^ "Daniel Sahuleka at Java Jazz Festival 2006". YouTube. 9 January 2008. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ "Maluku Tribal Dance". YouTube. 19 October 2008. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ "FURIUZ STYLEZ - KEPALA BATU videoclip (Molukse Rap)". YouTube. 6 September 2007. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ a b "Moluccan exiles will settle for autonomy | Radio Netherlands Worldwide". Rnw.nl. 17 August 2009. Archived from the original on 20 August 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ "Indonesia approves Moluccan change of course | Radio Netherlands Worldwide". Rnw.nl. 17 August 2009. Archived from the original on 21 August 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2009.
- ^ Images of 1970 state visit by former President Suharto. [1].
- ^ Newspaper article. [2] Retrieved 5 October 2010. Archived 3 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Dutch television report
- ^ Live video footage interview with Alex Manuputty in exile, in the USA.
- ^ "Three activists in Maluku convicted of treason for raising RMS flag".
- ^ Note that its head of state remained C.Soumokil who continued to lead the armed struggle on Ceram.
- ^ Dutch television interview with Junus Habibie
- ^ "Junus Effendi Habibie - Part 2". YouTube. 24 March 2008. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ^ "MALUKU TANAH AIRKU - LAGU KEBANGSAAN R.M.S. - 25 APRIL 2009 25 04 2009 MENA MURIA APELDOORN". YouTube. 29 April 2009. Archived from the original on 22 December 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
External links
- Official government website (in Dutch)
- Provisional Constitution of the Republic of South Moluccas (in Dutch)