Indonesia

Indonesia A country comprising of some 13,000 islands, which had been colonized by the Dutch from 1602 in order to control the spice trade. As the Netherlands lost its pre-eminence as a seafaring nation, the Dutch East Indies, as it was known, became a cornerstone not just of Dutch imperialism but also of Dutch commercial and economic prosperity. From 1901, a series of reforms introduced better educational and health provisions for the indigenous population, as well as some access to local government. In 1916 a Volksraad (People's Council) was established, to which the indigenous population sent fifteen out of the 39 representatives (30 out of 60 from 1931). Nevertheless, colonial rule was still very much geared to Dutch requirements, while the emergence of a substantial indigenous commercial middle class was hampered by the existence of a prosperous Chinese immigrant community.

The political and economic impotence of the native Indonesian population caused much resentment, and led to the formation of the Sarekat Islam in 1912 as the country's first nationalist movement. This was followed by a host of other, often more radical, movements. Most notably, it was soon eclipsed by the Indonesian Communist Party, founded in 1920, and the radical Partai Nasional Indonesia (PNI, Indonesian Nationalist Party) under Sukarno in 1927 (it adopted this current name in 1928). These parties were brutally suppressed by the colonial authorities. Meanwhile, the rise of nationalist groups triggered the evolution of radical, racist settlers' groups, looking to South Africa for inspiration for its independent colonial status and race relations. The most important of these groups was the Vaderlandse Club (Patriotic Club), founded in 1929, and the Nazi Nationaal-Socialistische Beweging (National Socialist Movement), which won a considerable following during the Great Depression.

The country was invaded in 1942 by the Japanese, who brought great suffering to the Dutch colonial population, while many Indonesian nationalists cooperated willingly. Thus strengthened by Japanese rule, Sukarno declared Indonesian independence on 17 August 1945. This was not recognized by the Dutch, who returned to bring considerable parts of the country under their control in two Police Actions in 1947 and 1948. In addition, Sukarno's republic was threatened by the Communist declaration of east Java as a ‘Soviet’ state. However, the Dutch forces were outnumbered and overstretched, so that despite considerable brutality (which remained a taboo subject in the Netherlands into the 1990s), the Dutch finally had to concede independence on 27 December 1949.

On account of the country's disparate geography, which often made communication very difficult and provided superb hideouts for opposition groups, and its ethnic, cultural, linguistic, and religious heterogeneity, democratic government remained all but an illusion. Instead, a strong military remained Sukarno's most important consideration, as he proceeded to extend his power until he became President for life in 1963. Even so, he managed to attract the displeasure of the army, mainly on three counts. First, his policy of neutrality and friendly relations with Communist China and the Soviet Union appeared often ambiguous and ill-advised, particularly at a time when the Communists continued to pose a significant domestic threat for the state. Secondly, while his incorporation by military force of Irian proved a success, his military conflict with Malaysia, known as the Confrontation, backfired. It dragged on, weakened the army in its fight against Communist rebels inside the country, and reduced its international standing even further. Finally, the Communist uprising of 1965, partly inspired by the military's engagement with Malaysia, and Sukarno's half-hearted response to it, spelt his end.

With the help of the army, Suharto assumed control over the government in 1967–8, and suppressed the Communists. He ended the Confrontation, and steered the country towards a strongly pro-capitalist course, with good relations with the USA and Japan. During the 1970s, Suharto was able to preside over strong economic growth, helped largely by high oil prices (Indonesia has large oil reserves). Unfortunately, most of the economic spoils went to members of the military and government protégés. There were also expensive, unsuccessful, and environmentally catastrophic attempts to settle large parts of the population (around five million people) in sparsely inhabited areas of the country, and to provide them with arable land through the deforestation of rainforest. In 1975 the army invaded East Timor, and formally annexed it in 1976. In the 1980s the economy suffered from a decline in world commodity prices (including oil), and was thus punished for its failure to establish a manufacturing base in the previous decade. In response, Suharto maintained a tight reign and introduced a series of economic austerity measures which led to resumed economic growth. It also led, however, to growing hardship among the mass of the population, which suffered from poverty and an unofficial unemployment rate of around 40 per cent in the early 1990s.

Suharto's decision in 1998 to increase energy prices by over 50 per cent led to mass protests, and ultimately forced Suharto to resign. His successor, Bacharuddin Habibie, was the choice of the military and political establishment. He was unable to stem the growth of the opposition movement, which in 1999 won the first democratic elections. The Indonesia Democratic Party—Struggle (PDI-P), headed by Sukarnoputri, emerged as winners. She was unable to form a government against the resistance of the army, and instead became Vice-President to Bacharuddin Habibie. It was this period of political weakness that helped render the army unable to intervene effectively in East Timor, which gained its independence in 2002. Habibie also became involved in a series of corruption scandals, and was forced to resign in 2001. He was succeeded by Sukarnoputri. In 2001, regional autonomy was instituted through an administrative reform, and in 2002 the process of democratization was continued when direct popular elections for the presidency were introduced. However, central authority continued to be undermined by a variety of guerrilla movements fighting for greater autonomy in Irian Jaya, Kalimantan, and Aceh. These were fuelled by further economic decline, caused by the continued Asian depression and the persistence of widespread corruption in the domestic economy.