From the Formation of the State of East Indonesia Towards the Establishment of the United States of Indonesia

by Ide Anak Agung Gde Agung, Linda Owens (Translator)

This book relates the circumstances that led to the establishment of the State of East Indonesia on December 24, 1946 following the Den Pasar Conference, Bali, and her political, economic, social and cultural policies until her dissolution on August 16, 1950 when the United States of Indonesia of which the State of East Indonesia was an integral part, was disbanded on August 15, 1950 through a proclamation read by President Sukarno before the joint session of the Provisional People's Representative Body and the Senate of the United States of Indonesia, in Jakarta.
During her existence of more than three years the State of East Indonesia was a state which possessed a democratic parliamentary government where the principles of democratic life were upheld by the government as attested by the militancy, dynamism, vocal utterance and freedom of the Provisional People's Representative Body of the State of East Indonesia in taking the initiatives to defend the aspirations of the people of the State of East Indonesia and in persistently conducting political and social supervision over the policies of the incumbent Government of the State of East Indonesia.
Although during the three years of her existence the State of East Indonesia maintained the principle of federalism as the government structure as unanimously agreed upon by the Provisional People's Representative Body of the State of East Indonesia, the Government of the State of East Indonesia, especially after the cabinet under Ide Anak Agung Gede Agung assumed power on December 15, 1947, brought to bear its utmost to bring into being cooperation with the Government of the Republic of Indonesia in Yogyakarta with a view to undertaking together the realization of the wish of the people of Indonesia, namely the achievement within the shortest time possible of free and sovereign United States of Indonesia. This political policy was named "political synthesis" by the Prime Minister Anak Agung Gde Agung and aimed to forge the solidarity and close cooperation between the government of the State of East Indonesia in Makasar (Ujung Pandang) and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia in Yogyakarta.
The details of what has been concisely described above can be found in the pages of this book which tells objectively and based on historical facts the story of political developments in and the policies of the Government of the State of East Indonesia with regard to national political issues at the time.

Genres: Politics, Indonesian Literature, History

906 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

Reviews

[Nanto]

Thesis penting dari buku ini yang jarang disadari banyak orang. Penulis buku ini tergolong diplomat dan pemikir Indonesia yang cukup produktif dengan buku-buku reflektif dan riset yang kuat. Buku ini dalam kacamata bangunan kenegaraan (nation building) Indonesia menyampaikan argumen bahwa federalisme bukanlah semata implan kolonialisme atas gagasan republik kesatuan Indonesia. BFO sebagai lembaga yang mewakili federalisme bukan sepenuhnya lahir atas gagasan Van Mook. Namun juga lahir dari luas dan keragaman Indonesia. Meskipun sebuah keniscayaan sejarah, banyak negara-negara federal melikuidasi secara unilateral dan Indonesia berdiri sebagai negara kesatuan pasca-penyerahan kedaualatan di dasawarsa 1950an, gagasan federalisme pernah hadir dan bukan sepenuhnya oposisi atas gagasan kesatuan. Kontestasi gagasan tersebut wajar hadir di tengah keragaman Indonesia.

Penulis sendiri dalam beberapa tulisannya menyampaikan narasi federalisme itu sebagai bagian resmi sejarah Indonesia. Berbeda dengan thesis Kahin di Nationalism and Revolution in Indonesia di mana narasi utamanya adalah politisi Indonesia yang ditemuinya di Yogyakarta saat riset lapangan pada periode iteregnum antara Clash I dan Clash II, Gde Agung mengangkat narasi politisi Negara Indonesia Timur yang hadir sebagai bagian resmi RI dan turut mengecam tindakan Belanda yang menahan pemimpin RI saat menyerang Yogya. Kahin sendiri berangkat ke Indonesia dengan salah satu bekal informasi dari Kees van Mook yang anak Van Mook yang ditemuinya di kapal yang membawanya menuju Indonesia. Dari situ Kahin berhasil menemui Van Mook di Jakarta, lalu mencoba mencari kontak secara mandiri ke elite Indonesia di Yogya. Studi Kahin mewakili satu perspektif dari narasi Revolusi Indonesia, seperti studi Ben Anderson dan John D. Legge mewakili perspektif lainnya.

Oleh karenanya, buku ini harus ditempatkan lebih dari sekedar memoir, namun bagian dari pluralitas narasi kebangsaan (nation building) Indonesia. Diskursus kebangsaan itu penting untuk dijaga agar kita tahu kontestasi gagasan adalah lumrah dan mendapatkan tempat terhormat dalam imaji kebangsaan Indonesia.

[Anata]

this is a history book about the formation of the Republic Indonesia. Ide Anak AGung, the Former Prime Minister of Indonesia wrote the whole story clearly based on in-depth research. This is an important book for me. Because after reading it, I know a lot of things about my great grandfather also because the book tells me an honest story about the history of Indonesia.

The last time I read this such of books was in my teenager back in high school. I knew there was something wrong with those books that my teacher told us to read, as the stories are suspiciously very simple and that our government always be the hero of its books. This book by Ide Anak AGung Gde Agung is way different from the book back then. Even though that it published earlier than my history books in high school. It has the real story from the beginning to an end that we missed after so long. It could be our new reference to get to know Indonesia better.

if there is one thing that i would love to change about this book perhaps is the language. for me the language is too odd and very hard that sometimes I had to struggling to understand the whole meaning of the passage.

[aldo zirsov]

ternyata ada edisi bahasa Indonesianya
:)