Indonesia has been shaped by its geographic position, natural resources, human migrations, wars and conquests, and trade, economics and most notably, its politics. A Dutch colony from the beginning of the 19th century, Indonesia finally attained independence after the end of World War II, with the leader of the country’s nationalist movement, Sukarno, becoming its first president. After 22 years of increasingly autocratic rule, he was ousted by one of his generals, Suharto, ushering in an era that promised to break from the political conflict, economic mismanagement and social disharmony of the past. This was Suharto’s “New Order” and it would keep its authoritarian creator in power for over three decades.
THE BEGINNING OF Indonesia’s Independence
BEGINNING in the 16th century, Europeans such as the Portuguese arrived on the shores of Indonesia in search of opportunities to monopolise the archipelago’s natural resources, including nutmeg, cloves, and cubeb pepper. The Dutch later arrived in 1602 and established the Dutch East India Company (VOC).
An economic powerhouse in Asian trade since the early 1600s, this Dutch trading company became the dominant European power in the country for almost 200 years. In the 18th century, however, socio-economic shifts in Europe and the Dutch defeat in the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (1780–4) led to the decline of the VOC, and the company was nationalised in 1796 and ultimately dissolved on the eve of the 19th century.
With the creation of the Dutch East Indies, the nationalised colonies came under the administration of the Dutch government in 1800, and by the early 20th century, the Dutch had extended their dominance in the region. But World War II saw invading Japanese forces put a swift end to Dutch rule, dismantling as much of the colonial government structure as they could.
During the period from 1942 to 1945, Indonesians initially welcomed the Japanese as liberators, but they soon experienced the hardships of occupation, struggling with a scarcity of food, clothing, and medications, whilst also being forced into labour under harsh conditions. However, the Japanese also trained and armed many young Indonesians and gave the country’s nationalist leaders a political voice. This allowed the country to prepare for a future as an independent Indonesian nation.
In August 1945, the Japanese surrendered but before doing so, they gave their full support to the Indonesian nationalist movement: With the political, economic, and social dismantling of the Dutch colonial state, a new era was to come for the country. Just two days after the Japanese surrender, nationalist leader Sukarno declared Indonesia’s independence.
INDONESIA Under Sukarno
Sukarno’s declaration of independence was rejected by the Dutch, and the Netherlands tried to re-establish its rule. But after a bitter diplomatic struggle and sporadic armed conflict that lasted over four years, known now as the Indonesian National Revolution or Indonesian War of Independence, the Dutch finally formally recognised Indonesian independence in 1949.
Sukarno envisioned a constitution fusing elements of Marxism, nationalism and Islam, but the parliamentary democracy that initially emerged was plagued by disagreements between the communists, nationalists and Islamists that formed the various political parties.
Eventually, Sukarno concluded that Western-style democracy wasn’t working in Indonesia, and in 1957, he called for a new system
