Abstract
Abstract This article explores the myths and evidence surrounding extreme violence and the framing of ‘ethnic soldiers’ as loyal and indispensable Moluccan soldiers in the Dutch army in the Indonesian War of Independence, 1945–1949. In this article, we first interrogate the origins of this framing in the Dutch–Indonesian case and the type of sources underlying this perspective. Next, we present the results of our research, which combines a study of Dutch veterans’ ego documents and oral-history projects. Based on this analysis, we reconsider both the framing and the evidence, after which we conclude with some comparative observations on ‘ethnic soldiers’ and the sources and perspectives underlying the ambivalent, but increasingly critical, framing of these men. Our methodology includes the use of digital-humanities techniques.
Highlights
In an attempt to put the rms on the international agenda, second-generation Moluccans initiated violent Moluccan political actions starting with arson of the Indonesian embassy in 1966; this was followed, in 1970, by the occupation of the residence of the Indonesian ambassador; train hijackings (1975 and 1977); and occupations of the Indonesian consulate (1975), a primary school (1977), and the provincial government office of Drenthe (1978).15. While this eruption of violent protest was short-lived, it may have revived the idea of a Moluccan ‘martial race’,16 both within their own community and in wider Dutch society. This may in turn have influenced the ways in which Dutch veterans presented their Moluccan, or ‘Ambonese’, brothers in arms in their memories of the war in Indonesia, which were mainly written down in the 1980s and later (Oostindie 2015:315)
We considered linking the entire dataset to the years of publication of the relevant ego documents, in order to find out whether perhaps the passing of time might have influenced the ways in which veterans reported on their experiences with Ambonese fellow soldiers
Other stories tell about the fierceness of Moluccan soldiers during military confrontations with Indonesian adversaries: I was involved in several actions; I went with a navy ship and was attached to a knil unit
Summary
Many stories regarding the Dutch military and civilians during the Indonesian War of Independence, 1945–1949, single out Moluccan soldiers in this respect. This may in turn have influenced the ways in which Dutch veterans presented their Moluccan, or ‘Ambonese’, brothers in arms in their memories of the war in Indonesia, which were mainly written down in the 1980s and later (Oostindie 2015:315).
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