Publisher's Synopsis
This book deals with the aspirations and goals of the Chinese ethnic minority in Indonesia from 1900 to 1965. Their arrival in Indonesia and their long struggle to improve their legal status and preserve their cultural identity is documented in detail from 1900 to 1965. Political and trading organizations were formed to advance Chinese minority interests in Indonesia and Chinese schools were opened to boost the future prospects of young people. The story is told of how they eventually had some successes in coping with Dutch colonialism. However, they never actually gained complete equality with the Dutch. Then they lost many of those gains under Japanese imperialism and indigenous Indonesian administrations. Thousands of Indonesian Chinese died in massacres and thousands more were forcibly repatriated to China. Their houses and shops were often burnt during riots and their women raped but they doggedly continued to survive and some even prospered. They were often subjected to unbearably heavy taxation and discriminatory legislation forced many of their businesses to close. Half of them were never able to obtain Indonesian citizenship and their status as a largely non-Muslim minority dealt them a tremendous disadvantage. The speaking of Chinese language was even banned at one stage. The book concludes with an assessment of successes so far and future prospects. However, as the struggle for rights continues today, the possibility of Indonesia's Chinese minority gaining total equality with the indigenous majority is as remote as ever. John Oxenham Goodman, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, China.
