Henley, David
Description
The "regional nationalisms" of early twentieth century
Indonesia are often portrayed either as mere components of
the Indonesian nationalist movement or as expressions of
"primordial" ethnic sentiments. Minahasa, however,
displayed a local nationalism which was neither. Minahasan
nationalism was an autonomous development conditioned by
many of the same modernising processes which generated its
Indonesian counterpart, but operating on a smaller scale,
and beginning at an earlier...[Show more] date.
The territorial framework for Minahasan nationalism was
created in the seventeenth century, when an area in North
Celebes was isolated by colonial boundaries from its
political and cultural environment. In the nineteenth
century, the population of this territory underwent a
dramatic social transformation as a result of intensified
Dutch rule, compulsory coffee cultivation, Christian
missionary activity, and Western education. It was in this
period that Minahasa, meaning united, became the usual name
for the area. Unity was implicit in the commonality of the
colonial experience, and inherent in the centralised
institutions created in the territory by the Dutch. The
mission also promoted unity as an explicit social ideal,
associating it both with Christian brotherhood and with an
idealisation of Minahasa's precolonial past.
Cultural Westernisation, together with intermarriage between
Minahasans and Europeans, created a 'mestizo' society more reminiscent of the Philippines than of most parts of the
Netherlands Indies. As in the Philippines, however,
nationalist reaction against colonial policies and
prejudices also began comparatively early. Before the turn
of the century, Minahasan government and church personnel
were already using the colonial press to denounce the
behaviour of their European superiors, and doing so in the
name of the Minahasan people.
This tradition of protest was continued after 1909 by the
political party Perserikatan Minahasa. The relationship
between Minahasan nationalists and the colonial government,
however, was usually characterised by bargaining and
negotiation rather than confrontation. One reason for this
was that 'loyal opposition' often proved effective. The
Minahasaraad, a uniquely democratic regional council created
in 1919, demonstrated the feasibility of progressive
emancipation under Dutch guidance. Another reason was that
Minahasans had become a subaltern elite of office workers
and soldiers throughout the Netherlands Indies, with a
corresponding stake in the colonial order. Even so, neither
Perserikatan Minahasa nor its successor Persatuan Minahasa
regarded colonial rule as desirable or permanent.
The relationship between Minahasan and Indonesian
nationalisms was complex. Few educated Minahasans, by 1942,
denied that they were Indonesians or that their political
future lay with Indonesia as a whole. On the other hand,
the specifically Minahasan nationalism inherited from the
previous century also remained strong. Factors sustaining it included the Minahasaraad, the Minahasan churches which
appeared in 1933 and 1934, and the Minahasan experience as a
sometimes unpopular minority among Indonesians. Minahasan
intellectuals therefore tended to envisage an independent
Indonesian commonwealth in which each ethno-national group
or bangsa, including bangsa Minahasa, would retain political
autonomy within a federal framework.
Items in Open Research are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.