11Story

04 September 2009

After Indonesian independence

Sharing Cultural Memory

Contents - About the museum Siwalima - The Maluku Islands (Moluccas) - History of the "Spice Islands"                  * Early history                  * The Iberians                     * The Dutch                 * After Indonesian independence                 * The 1999-2003 Inter-communal Conflict - The current exhibitions - Virtual Museum - Bibliography

 

 

After Indonesian independence

 

With the declaration of a single republic of Indonesia in 1950 to replace the federal state, the South Moluccas (Republik Maluku Selatan, RMS) attempted to secede. This movement was led by Chris Soumokil (former Supreme Prosecutor of the Eastern Indonesia state) and supported by the Moluccan members of the Netherlands special troops. This movement was defeated by the Indonesian army after 17 years of bloody struggle and by special agreement with the Netherlands the troops were transferred to the Netherlands. The commencement of Indonesian transmigration of (mainly) Javanese populations to the outer islands (including Maluku) during the 1960s is thought to have aggravated independence and issues of religious / ethnic politics. There has been occasional ethnic and nationalist violence on the islands.   Maluku is one of the first provinces of Indonesia, proclaimed in 1945 until 1999, when the Maluku Utara and Halmahera Tengah Regencies were split off as a separate province of North Maluku. Its capital is Ternate, on a small island to the west of the large island of Halmahera. The capital of the remaining part of Maluku province remains at Ambon.

 

Regiment of Netherlands east Indies Forces, picture taken in 1943, © Autralian War Memorial

 

 

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