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Chinese Indonesians ( id, Orang Tionghoa Indonesia) and colloquially Chindo or just Tionghoa are Indonesians whose ancestors arrived from China at some stage in the last eight centuries. Chinese people and their Indonesian descendants have lived in the Indonesian archipelago since at least the 13th century. Many came initially as sojourners (temporary residents), intending to return home in their old age. Some, however, stayed in the region as
economic migrants An economic migrant is someone who emigrates from one region to another, including crossing international borders, seeking an improved standard of living, because the conditions or job opportunities in the migrant's own region are insufficient. Th ...
. Their population grew rapidly during the colonial period when workers were contracted from their home provinces in Southern China.
Discrimination against Chinese Indonesians Discrimination against people of Chinese descent in Indonesia has been carried out since the time of the Dutch East India Company. Serious violence against Chinese people has occurred at irregular intervals since 1740, when the soldiers of the D ...
has occurred since the start of Dutch colonialism in the region, although government policies implemented since 1998 have attempted to redress this. Resentment of ethnic Chinese economic aptitude grew in the 1950s as
Native Indonesian Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, Indi ...
merchants felt they could not remain competitive. In some cases, government action propagated the stereotype that ethnic Chinese-owned conglomerates were corrupt. Although the 1997 Asian financial crisis severely disrupted their business activities, reform of government policy and legislation removed a number of political and social restrictions on Chinese Indonesians. The development of local Chinese society and culture is based upon three pillars: clan associations, ethnic media and Chinese-language schools. These flourished during the period of Chinese nationalism in the final years of China's
Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-spea ...
and through the
Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
; however, differences in the objective of nationalist sentiments brought about a split in the population. One group supported political reforms in China, while others worked towards improved status in local politics. The New Order government (1967–1998) dismantled the pillars of ethnic Chinese identity in favor of assimilation policies as a solution to the so-called "Chinese Problem". The Chinese Indonesian population of
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
accounts for nearly half of the group's national population. They are generally more urbanized than Indonesia's indigenous population but significant rural and agricultural communities still exist throughout the country. Declining fertility rates have resulted in an upward shift in the
population pyramid A population pyramid (age structure diagram) or "age-sex pyramid" is a graphical illustration of the distribution of a population (typically that of a country or region of the world) by age groups and sex; it typically takes the shape of a pyramid ...
, as the median age increases. Emigration has contributed to a shrinking population and communities have emerged in more industrialized nations in the second half of the 20th century. Some have participated in repatriation programs to the People's Republic of China, while others emigrated to neighbouring Singapore and Western countries to escape anti-Chinese sentiment. Among the overseas residents, their identities are noticeably more Indonesian than Chinese.


Classification

The term "Chinese Indonesian" has never been clearly defined, especially for the period before 1900. There was no Indonesian identity or nationality before the 20th century. The ethno-political category
Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctiv ...
was also poorly defined before the rise of modern Chinese nationalism in the late 19th century. At its broadest, the term "Chinese Indonesian" is used to refer to anyone from, or having an ancestor from, the present-day territory of China. This usage is problematic because it conflates Han Chinese with other ethnic groups under Chinese rule. For instance, Admiral
Zheng He Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, fleet admiral, and court eunuch during China's early Ming dynasty. He was originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family and later adopted the surname Zheng conferr ...
(1371–1433), who led several Chinese maritime expeditions into Southeast Asia, was a Muslim from Yunnan and was not of Chinese ancestry, yet he is generally characterized as "Chinese". This broad use is also problematic because it prioritizes a line of descent from China over all other lines and may conflict with an individual's own self-identity. Many people who identify as Chinese Indonesian are of mixed Chinese and Indonesian descent. Indonesia's president
Abdurrahman Wahid Abdurrahman Wahid ( ; born Abdurrahman ad-Dakhil; 7 September 1940 – 30 December 2009), though more colloquially known as Gus Dur (), was an Indonesian politician and Islamic religious leader who served as the 4th president of Indonesia, fr ...
(1940-2009) is widely believed to have some Chinese ancestry, but he did not regard himself as Chinese. Some narrower uses of the term focus on culture, defining as "Chinese Indonesian" those who choose to prioritize their Chinese ancestry, especially those who have
Chinese name Chinese names or Chinese personal names are names used by individuals from Greater China and other parts of the Chinese-speaking world throughout East and Southeast Asia (ESEA). In addition, many names used in Japan, Korea and Vietnam are ofte ...
s or follow aspects of Chinese religion or
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
. Within this cultural definition, a distinction has commonly been made between
peranakan The Peranakans () are an ethnic group defined by their genealogical descent from the first waves of Southern Chinese settlers to maritime Southeast Asia, known as Nanyang (), namely the British Colonial ruled ports in the Malay Peninsula, ...
and
totok Totok is an Indonesian term of Javanese origin, used in Indonesia to refer to recent migrants of Arab, Chinese or European origins. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries it was popularised among colonists in Batavia, who initially coined ...
Chinese. Peranakan were generally said to have mixed Chinese and local ancestry and to have developed a hybrid culture that included elements from both Chinese and local cultures. Totoks were generally said to be first-generation migrants and to have retained a strong Chinese identity. Other definitions focus on the succession of legal classifications that have separated "Chinese" from other inhabitants of the archipelago. Both the
Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...
and the Dutch colonial government (from 1815) applied complex systems of ethnic classification to their subjects, based on religion, culture and place of origin. Chinese Indonesians were sometimes classified as "Natives", sometimes as "Chinese", sometimes as "Foreign Orientals", a category that included Arabs, Indians and Siamese. After independence, the community was divided between those who accepted Indonesian citizenship and those who did not. Under the New Order of President Suharto, citizens of Chinese descent were formally classified as "Indonesian citizens of foreign descent" (''Warga Negara Indonesia keturunan asing''). In public discourse they were distinguished from
native Indonesians Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, Indi ...
as "non-native" (''non-pribumi'' or ''non-pri'').


History


Early interactions

The first recorded movement of people from China into
Maritime Southeast Asia Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. Maritime Southeast Asia is sometimes also referred to as Island Southeast Asia, Insular Southeast Asia or Oceanic Sout ...
was the arrival of
Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...
forces under Kublai Khan that culminated in the invasion of Java in 1293. Their intervention hastened the decline of the classical kingdoms such as
Singhasari Singhasari ( jv, ꦏꦫꦠꦺꦴꦤ꧀ꦱꦶꦔ꧀ꦲꦱꦫꦶ, translit=Karaton Singhasari or , id, Kerajaan Singasari) was a Javanese Hindu kingdom located in east Java between 1222 and 1292. The kingdom succeeded the Kingdom of Kediri as ...
and precipitated the rise of the Majapahit empire.
Chinese Muslim Islam has been practiced in China since the 7th century CE.. Muslims are a minority group in China, representing 1.6-2 percent of the total population (21,667,000- 28,210,795) according to various estimates. Though Hui Muslims are the most nume ...
traders from the eastern coast of China arrived at the coastal towns of Indonesia and
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
in the early 15th century. They were led by the mariner
Zheng He Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, fleet admiral, and court eunuch during China's early Ming dynasty. He was originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family and later adopted the surname Zheng conferr ...
, who commanded several expeditions to Southeast Asia between 1405 and 1430. In the book ''
Yingya Shenglan The ''Yingya Shenglan'' (), written by Ma Huan in 1451, is a book about the countries visited by him over the course of the Ming treasure voyages led by Zheng He Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diploma ...
'', his translator
Ma Huan Ma Huan (, Xiao'erjing: ) (c. 1380–1460), courtesy name Zongdao (), pen name Mountain-woodcutter (會稽山樵), was a Chinese voyager and translator who accompanied Admiral Zheng He on three of his seven expeditions to the Western Oceans. Ma ...
documented the activities of the Chinese Muslims in the archipelago and the legacy left by Zheng He and his men. These traders settled along the northern coast of
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
, but there is no documentation of their settlements beyond the 16th century. The Chinese Muslims were likely to have been absorbed into the majority Muslim population. Between 1450 and 1520, the
Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...
's interest in southeastern Asia reached a low point and trade, both legal and illegal, rarely reached the archipelago. The
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
made no mention of any resident Chinese minority population when they arrived in Indonesia in the early 16th century. Trade from the north was re-established when China legalized private trade in 1567 through licensing 50 junks a year. Several years later silver began flowing into the region, from Japan, Mexico, and Europe, and trade flourished once again. Distinct Chinese colonies emerged in hundreds of ports throughout southeastern Asia, including the pepper port of
Banten Banten ( id, Banten; Sundanese: , romanized ''Banten'') is the westernmost province on the island of Java, Indonesia. Its capital city is Serang. The province borders West Java and the Special Capital Region of Jakarta on the east, the Ja ...
. Some Chinese traders avoided
Portuguese Malacca Portuguese control of Malacca, a city on the Malay Peninsula, refers to the 130 year period (1511–1641) when it was a possession of the Portuguese East Indies. It was conquered from the Malacca Sultanate as part of Portuguese attempts to ...
after it fell to the Portuguese in the 1511 Capture of Malacca. Many Chinese, however, cooperated with the Portuguese for the sake of trade. Some Chinese in
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
assisted in Muslim attempts to reconquer the city using ships. The Javanese–Chinese participation in retaking Malacca was recorded in "The Malay Annals of Semarang and Cerbon".


Chinese in the archipelago under Dutch East India Company rule (1600–1799)

By the time the Dutch arrived in the early 17th century, major Chinese settlements existed along the north coast of Java. Most were traders and merchants, but they also practiced agriculture in inland areas. The Dutch contracted many of these immigrants as skilled artisans in the construction of Batavia (Jakarta) on the northwestern coast of Java. A recently created harbor was selected as the new headquarters of the
Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( nl, Verenigde Oostindische Compagnie, the VOC) was a chartered company established on the 20th March 1602 by the States General of the Netherlands amalgamating existing companies into the first joint-stock ...
(', VOC) in 1609 by
Jan Pieterszoon Coen Jan Pieterszoon Coen (, 8 January 1587 – 21 September 1629) was an officer of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in the early 17th century, holding two terms as governor-general of the Dutch East Indies. He was the founder of Batavia, ...
. It grew into a major hub for trade with China and India. Batavia became home to the largest Chinese community in the archipelago and remains so in the 21st century. Coen and other early
governors-general Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
promoted the entry of Chinese immigrants to new settlements "for the benefit of those places and for the purpose of gathering spices like cloves,
nutmeg Nutmeg is the seed or ground spice of several species of the genus ''Myristica''. ''Myristica fragrans'' (fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg) is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fruit: nutmeg, from its seed, an ...
, and mace". The port's Chinese population of 300–400 in 1619 had grown to at least 10,000 by 1740. The Dutch Company ruled migrant ethnic groups in Batavia using 'officers' drawn from each community, usually with the title ''kapitan'' or ''majoor''. These officers had a high degree of authority over their community and undertook negotiations between the community and the Company authorities. Dutch colonial rule saw the beginning of anti-Chinese policies, including killings and ghettoization. Most of those who settled in the archipelago had already severed their ties with the mainland and welcomed favorable treatment and protection under the Dutch. Some became "revenue farmers", middlemen within the corporate structure of the VOC, tasked with collecting export–import duties and managing the harvest of natural resources; although this was highly profitable, it earned the enmity of the ''pribumi'' population. Others worked as opium farmers. Following the
1740 Batavia massacre The 1740 Batavia massacre ( nl, Chinezenmoord, lit=Murder of the Chinese; id, Geger Pacinan, lit=Chinatown tumult) was a massacre and pogrom in which European soldiers of the Dutch East India Company and Javanese collaborators killed ethnic ...
and ensuing war, in which the Chinese rebelled against the Dutch, the Dutch attempted to place a quota on the number of Chinese who could enter the Indies.
Amoy Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...
was designated as the only immigration port to the archipelago, and ships were limited to a specified number of crew and passengers depending on size. This quota was adjusted at times to meet demand for overseas workers, such as in July 1802 when sugar mills near Batavia were in need of workers. Chinese who married local Javanese women and converted to Islam created a distinct Chinese Muslim
Peranakan The Peranakans () are an ethnic group defined by their genealogical descent from the first waves of Southern Chinese settlers to maritime Southeast Asia, known as Nanyang (), namely the British Colonial ruled ports in the Malay Peninsula, ...
community in Java. Chinese rarely had to convert to Islam to marry Javanese
abangan The ''Abangan'' are Javanese people who are Muslims and practice a much more syncretic version of Islam than the more orthodox santri. The term, apparently derived from the Javanese language word for red, ''abang'', was first developed by Cli ...
women but a significant amount of their offspring did, and Batavian Muslims absorbed the Chinese Muslim community which was descended from converts. Adoption of Islam back then was a marker of peranakan status which it no longer means. The Semaran Adipati and the Jayaningrat families were of Chinese origin.


Chinese in the archipelago under Dutch colonial rule to 1900

When the VOC was nationalized on 31 December 1799, many freedoms the Chinese experienced under the corporation were eliminated by the Dutch government. Among them was the Chinese monopoly on the salt trade which had been granted by the VOC administration. An 1816 regulation introduced a requirement for the indigenous population and Chinese traveling within the territory to obtain a travel permit. Those who did not carry a permit faced arrest by security officers. The governor-general also introduced a resolution in 1825 which forbade "foreign Asians in Java such as Malays, Buginese and Chinese" from living within the same neighborhood as the native population. Following the costly
Java War The Java War ( jv, ꦥꦼꦫꦁꦗꦮ) or Diponegoro War () was fought in central Java from 1825 to 1830, between the colonial Dutch Empire and native Javanese rebels. The war started as a rebellion led by Prince Diponegoro, a leading member ...
(1825–1830) the Dutch introduced a new agrarian and cultivation system that required farmers to "yield up a portion of their fields and cultivate crops suitable for the European market". Compulsory cultivation restored the economy of the colony, but ended the system of revenue farms established under the VOC. The Chinese were perceived as temporary residents and encountered difficulties in obtaining land rights. Europeans were prioritized in the choice of plantation areas, while colonial officials believed the remaining plots must be protected and preserved for the indigenous population. Short-term and renewable leases of varying lengths were later introduced as a temporary measure, but many Chinese remained on these lands upon expiration of their contracts and became squatters. At the beginning of the 20th century, the colonial government began to implement the "
Ethical Policy The Dutch Ethical Policy ( nl, Ethische Politiek) was the official policy of the colonial government of the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) during the four decades from 1901 until the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies, Japan ...
" to protect the indigenous population, casting the Chinese as the "foremost enemy of the natives". Under the new policy, the administration increased restrictions on Chinese economic activities, which they believed exploited the native population. Powerful Chinese families were described as the '
Cabang Atas The Cabang Atas (''Van Ophuijsen Spelling System'': Tjabang Atas) — literally 'highest branch' in Indonesian language, Indonesian — was the traditional Chinese establishment or gentry of Dutch East Indies, colonial Indonesia. They were the fa ...
' ("upper branch") of colonial society, forming influential bureaucratic and business dynasties, such as the
Kwee family of Ciledug The Kwee family of Ciledug was an influential bureaucratic and business dynasty of the ' Cabang Atas' or the Chinese gentry of the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia). From the mid-nineteenth until the mid-twentieth century, they featured ...
and the Tan family of Cirebon. In western
Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
, the Chinese established their first major mining settlement in 1760. Ousting Dutch settlers and the local Malay princes, they joined into a new republic known as Lanfang. By 1819, they came into conflict with the new Dutch government and were seen as "incompatible" with its objectives, yet indispensable for the development of the region. The
Bangka–Belitung Islands The Bangka Belitung Islands ( id, Kepulauan Bangka Belitung) is a province of Indonesia. Situated off the southeastern coast of Sumatra, the province comprises two main landmasses— Bangka and Belitung—and numerous smaller islands. Bangka Bel ...
also became examples of major settlements in rural areas. In 1851, 28 Chinese were recorded on the islands and, by 1915, the population had risen to nearly 40,000 and fishing and tobacco industries had developed.
Coolie A coolie (also spelled koelie, kuli, khuli, khulie, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a term for a low-wage labourer, typically of South Asian or East Asian descent. The word ''coolie'' was first popularized in the 16th century by European traders acros ...
s brought into the region after the end of the 19th century were mostly hired from the Straits Settlements owing to recruiting obstacles that existed in China.


Divided nationalism (1900–1949)

The Chinese revolutionary figure Sun Yat-sen visited southeast Asia in 1900, and, later that year, the socio-religious organization Tiong Hoa Hwe Koan (), also known as the Chinese Association, was founded. Their goal was to urge ethnic Chinese in the Indies to support the revolutionary movement in China. In its effort to build Chinese-speaking schools the association argued that the teaching of the English and Chinese languages should be prioritized over Dutch, to provide themselves with the means of taking, in the words of
Phoa Keng Hek Phoa Keng Hek Sia (; 1857–1937) was a Chinese Indonesian ''Landheer'' (landlord), social activist and founding president of Tiong Hoa Hwe Koan, an influential Confucian educational and social organisation meant to better the position of ethnic ...
, "a two or three-day voyage (Java–
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
) into a wider world where they can move freely" and overcome restrictions of their activities. Several years later, the Dutch authorities abandoned its segregation policies, abolished travel permits for the ethnic Chinese, and allowed them to freely move throughout the colony. The 1911
Xinhai Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Manchu-led Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China. The revolution was the culmination of a ...
and the 1912 founding of the Republic of China coincided with a growing Chinese–nationalist movement within the Indies. Although there was no recognizable nationalist movement among the indigenous population until 1908, Dutch authorities feared that nationalist sentiments would spread with the growth of ethnically mixed associations, known as ''
kongsi Kongsi () is a Hokkien transcription term meaning "company", especially businesses which have been incorporated. However, the word has other meanings under different historical contexts. ''Kongsi'' were most commonly known as Chinese social organ ...
''. In 1911, some Javanese members of the Kong Sing association in Surakarta broke away and clashed with the ethnic Chinese. This incident led to the creation of
Sarekat Islam Sarekat Islam or Syarikat Islam ( 'Islamic Association' or 'Islamic Union'; SI) was an Indonesian socio-political organization founded at the beginning of the 20th Century during the Dutch colonial era. Initially, SI served as a cooperative of ...
, the first organized popular nationalist movement in the Indies. Indigenous groups saw the Chinese nationalist sentiment as "haughty", leading to mutual antagonism. The anti-Chinese sentiment spread throughout Java in 1918 and led to violent attacks orchestrated by members of Sarekat Islam on the ethnic Chinese in Kudus. Following this incident, the
left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
Chinese nationalist daily ''
Sin Po Sinbo () was a minister who served the kings in Gaya confederacy. Queen Mojong who was the second wife of Geodeung of Geumgwan Gaya was his daughter. He served as government officer of Gaya confederacy. In 48, when Heo Hwang-ok came over from I ...
'' called on both sides to work together to improve living conditions because it considered most ethnic Chinese, like most of the indigenous population, to be poor. ''Sin Po'' first went into print in 1910 and began gaining momentum as the leading advocate of Chinese political nationalism in 1917. The ethnic Chinese who followed its stream of thought refused any involvement with local institutions and would only participate in politics relating to mainland China. A second stream was later formed by wealthy ethnic Chinese who received an education at Dutch-run schools. This Dutch-oriented group wished for increased participation in local politics, Dutch education for the ethnic Chinese, and the furthering of ethnic Chinese economic standing within the colonial economy. Championed by the
Volksraad The Volksraad was a people's assembly or legislature in Dutch or Afrikaans speaking government. Assembly South Africa *Volksraad (South African Republic) (1840–1902) *Volksraad (Natalia Republic), a similar assembly that existed in the Natalia Re ...
's Chinese representatives, such as
Hok Hoei Kan Kan Hok Hoei Sia (; 6 January 1881 - 1 March 1951), generally known as Hok Hoei Kan or in short H. H. Kan, was a prominent public figure, statesman and patrician landowner of Peranakan Chinese descent in the Dutch East Indies (today known as Indo ...
,
Loa Sek Hie Loa Sek Hie Sia (born in Batavia in 1898 - died in The Hague in 1965) was a colonial Indonesian politician, parliamentarian and the founding ''Voorzitter'' or chairman of the controversial, ethnic-Chinese self-defense force Pao An Tui (1946 - 19 ...
and
Phoa Liong Gie Phoa Liong Gie Sia (: born in Bandung on June 4, 1905 – died on January 14, 1983 in Switzerland) was an Indonesian-born Swiss jurist, politician and newspaper owner of the late colonial era in the Dutch East Indies. Background and education H ...
, this movement gained momentum and reached its peak with the Chung Hwa Congress of 1927 and the 1928 formation of the
Chung Hwa Hui Chung Hwa Hui (1928–1942; the 'Chinese Association'), also known as CHH, was a conservative, largely pro-Dutch political organisation and party in the Dutch East Indies (today Indonesia), often criticised as a mouthpiece of the colonial Chines ...
party, which elected Kan as its president. The editor-in-chief of the ''Madjallah Panorama'' news magazine criticized ''Sin Po'' for misguiding the ethnic Chinese by pressuring them into a Chinese-nationalist stance. In 1932, pro-Indonesian counterparts founded the to support absorption of the ethnic Chinese into the Javanese population and support the call for
self-government __NOTOC__ Self-governance, self-government, or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any form of ...
of Indonesia. Members of this group were primarily . This division resurfaced at the end of the period of Japanese occupation (1942–1945). Under the occupation ethnic Chinese communities were attacked by Japanese forces, in part owing to suspicions that they contained sympathizers of the
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
as a consequence of the
Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
. When the Dutch returned, following the end of World War II, the chaos caused by advancing forces and retreating revolutionaries also saw radical Muslim groups attack ethnic Chinese communities. Although revolutionary leaders were sympathetic toward the ethnic Chinese, they were unable to stop the sporadic violence. Those who were affected fled from the rural areas to Dutch-controlled cities, a move many Indonesians saw as proof of pro-Dutch sentiments. There was evidence, however, that Chinese Indonesians were represented and participated in independence efforts. Four members of the
Investigating Committee for Preparatory Work for Independence The Investigating Committee for Preparatory Work for Independence ( id, Badan Penyelidik Usaha-usaha Persiapan Kemerdekaan, BPUPK; ja, 独立準備調査会, Hepburn: , Nihon-shiki / Kunrei-shiki: ), sometimes referred to as the Investigating Co ...
(BPUPK) were Chinese:
Liem Koen Hian Liem Koen Hian (3 November 1897 – 4 November 1952) was an Indonesian journalist and politician. He was born in Banjarmasin, the son of a local peranakan Chinese business owner, Liem Ke An. He attended the Hollands-Chineesche School to class 6, ...
,
Oey Tiang Tjoei Oey Tiang Tjoei (Simplified Chinese characters, Chinese: 黄长水; 1893 – 1977) was an Indonesian journalist, known for being a member of the Investigating Committee for Preparatory Work for Independence. Prior to the Pacific War, he was a promi ...
, Oey Tjong Hauw and Tan Eng Hoa.
Yap Tjwan Bing Yap Tjwan Bing (1910-1988) was an Indonesian politician active in the Indonesian independence movement. Life and career Bing was born in Kediri, son of a Chinese Indonesian merchant. He trained in pharmacy in Amsterdam (1932-1939) and subsequen ...
was the sole Chinese member of the
Preparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence The Preparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence ( id, Panitia Persiapan Kemerdekaan Indonesia), PPKI, ja, 独立準備委員会, Dokuritsu Junbi Iinkai, lead=yes) was a body established on 7 August 1945 to prepare for the transfer of auth ...
(PPKI).
Ong Eng Die Ong Eng Die (; born 20 June 1910, date of death unknown), was a Chinese Indonesian politician and economist.West Papua) following the 1949 Round Table Conference. In the same year that the
Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...
retreated to Taiwan, allowing the
Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...
to take control of mainland China. Most Chinese Indonesians considered a communist China less attractive than a newly independent Indonesia, but in the archipelago their loyalties were questioned. Ethnic Chinese born in the Dutch East Indies whose parents were domiciled under Dutch administration were regarded as citizens of the new state according to the principle of '' jus soli'', or "right of the soil". However, Chinese law considered a person as a Chinese citizen according to the principle of '' jus sanguinis'', or right of blood. This meant that all Indonesian citizens of Chinese descent were also claimed as citizens by the People's Republic of China. After several attempts by both governments to resolve this issue, Indonesia and China signed a Dual Nationality Treaty on the sidelines of the 1955
Asian–African Conference The first large-scale Asian–African or Afro–Asian Conference ( id, Konferensi Asia–Afrika)—also known as the Bandung Conference—was a meeting of Asian and African states, most of which were newly independent, which took place on 18–2 ...
in Bandung. One of its provisions permitted Indonesians to renounce Chinese citizenship if they wished to hold Indonesian citizenship only. As many as 390,000 ethnic Chinese, two-thirds of those with rightful claims to Indonesian citizenship renounced their Chinese status when the treaty came into effect in 1962. On the other hand, an estimated 60,000 ethnic Chinese students left for the People's Republic of China in the 1950s and early 1960s. The first wave of students were almost entirely educated in Chinese-language schools, but were not able to find opportunities for tertiary education in Indonesia. Seeking quality scientific professions, they entered China with high hopes for their future and that of the mainland. Subsequent migrations occurred in 1960 as part of a repatriation program and in 1965–1966 following a series of anti-communist violence that also drew anger toward the ethnic Chinese. As many as 80 percent of the original students who entered the mainland eventually became refugees in Hong Kong. During China's
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...
(1966–1976),
Red Guards Red Guards () were a mass student-led paramilitary social movement mobilized and guided by Chairman Mao Zedong in 1966 through 1967, during the first phase of the Cultural Revolution, which he had instituted.Teiwes According to a Red Guard lead ...
questioned the loyalty of the returned overseas Chinese because of their foreign connections. They were attacked as "imperialists", "capitalists", "spies", "half-breeds", and "foreign devils".As most had grown up in an urban environment they were sent to the countryside, told to "rebel against their own class background", and eventually lost contact with their families. In 1959, following the introduction of soft- authoritarian rule through
Guided Democracy Guided democracy, also called managed democracy, is a formally democratic government that functions as a ''de facto'' authoritarian government or in some cases, as an autocratic government. Such hybrid regimes are legitimized by elections th ...
, the Indonesian government and military began placing restrictions on
alien Alien primarily refers to: * Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country ** Enemy alien, the above in times of war * Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth ** Specifically, intelligent extrater ...
residence and trade. These regulations culminated in the enactment of Presidential Regulation 10 in November 1959, banning retail services by non-indigenous persons in rural areas. Ethnic Chinese,
Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
, and Dutch businessmen were specifically targeted during its enforcement to provide a more favorable market for indigenous businesses. This move was met with protests from the Chinese government and some circles of Indonesian society. Javanese writer
Pramoedya Ananta Toer Pramoedya Ananta Toer (EYD: Pramudya Ananta Tur) (6 February 1925 – 30 April 2006) was an Indonesian author of novels, short stories, essays, polemics and histories of his homeland and its people. His works span the colonial period under Dutch ...
later criticized the policies in his 1961 book '' Hoakiau di Indonesia''. An integrationist movement, led by the Chinese-Indonesian organisation Baperki ('), began to gather interest in 1963, including that of President Sukarno. However, a series of attacks on ethnic Chinese communities in
West Java West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...
in May proved it to be short-lived, despite the government's condemnation of the violence. When Baperki was branded a communist organization in 1965 the ethnic Chinese were implicated by association; this was exacerbated in the public mind by the People's Republic of China's communism. As many as 500,000 people, the majority of them Javanese
Abangan The ''Abangan'' are Javanese people who are Muslims and practice a much more syncretic version of Islam than the more orthodox santri. The term, apparently derived from the Javanese language word for red, ''abang'', was first developed by Cli ...
Muslims and Balinese Indonesians but including a minority of several thousand ethnic Chinese, were killed in the anti-communist purge which followed the failed coup d'état, suspected as being communist-led, on 30 September 1965.


Managing the "Chinese Problem" (1967–1998)

When the New Order government of General Suharto came into power in 1966–1967, it introduced a political system based only on the Pancasila (five principles) ideology. To prevent the ideological battles that occurred during Sukarno's presidency from resurfacing, Suharto's "Pancasila democracy" sought a depoliticized system in which discussions of forming a cohesive ethnic Chinese identity were no longer allowed. A government committee was formed in 1967 to examine various aspects of the " Chinese Problem" (') and agreed that forced emigration of whole communities was not a solution: "The challenge was to take advantage of their economic aptitude whilst eliminating their perceived economic dominance." The semi-governmental Institute for the Promotion of National Unity (', LPKB) was formed to advise the government on facilitating assimilation of Chinese Indonesians. This process was done through highlighting the differences between the ethnic Chinese and the indigenous ''
pribumi Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, India ...
'', rather than seeking similarities. Expressions of Chinese culture through language, religion, and traditional festivals were banned and the ethnic Chinese were pressured to adopt Indonesian-sounding names. During the 1970s and 1980s, Suharto and his government brought in Chinese Indonesian businesses to participate in the economic development programs of the New Order while keeping them highly vulnerable to strengthen the central authority and restrict political freedoms. Patron–client relationships, mainly through the exchange of money for security, became an accepted norm among the ethnic Chinese as they maintained a social contract through which they could claim a sense of belonging in the country. A minority of the economic elite of Indonesian society, both those who were and were not ethnic Chinese, secured relationships with Suharto's family members and members of the military for protection, while small business owners relied on local law enforcement officials. Stereotypes of the wealthy minority became accepted as generalized facts but failed to acknowledge that said businessmen were few in number compared to the small traders and shop owners. In a 1989 interview conducted by scholar Adam Schwarz for his book ''A Nation in Waiting: Indonesia's Search for Stability'', an interviewee stated that, "to most Indonesians, the word 'Chinese' is synonymous with corruption". The economic role of the ethnic Chinese was contradictory because it did not translate to acceptance of their status in the greater society. They were politically weak and often faced social harassment. Anti-Chinese sentiment gathered intensity through the 1990s. President Suharto gathered the most powerful businessmen—mostly Chinese Indonesians—in a nationally televised 1990 meeting at his private ranch, calling on them to contribute 25 percent of their shares to
cooperative A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-contro ...
s. Commentators described the spectacle as "good theatre", as it only served to reinforce resentment and suspicion of the ethnic Chinese among the indigenous population. Major riots broke out in
Situbondo Situbondo Regency is a Regencies of Indonesia, regency ''(kabupaten)'' of East Java province, Indonesia. It covers an area of 1,638.50 km2, and had a population of 647,619 at the 2010 Census and 685,967 at the 2020 Census. It is located in ...
(October 1996),
Tasikmalaya en, Neaty City , nickname = nl, Delhi Van Java en, Delhi of Java , image_skyline = , imagesize = , image_caption = Clockwise from the top: Great Mosque of Tasi ...
(December 1996), and Rengasdengklok (January 1997). When Suharto entered his seventh term as president, following an uncontested election on 10 March 1998, Indonesian students began a series of major demonstrations in protest of the New Order regime which continued for weeks and culminated in the shootings of four students by security forces at
Trisakti University Trisakti University (Usakti) is Indonesia's largest private university located in Jakarta, Indonesia. Trisakti University, is the only private university in Indonesia which was established by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia. Found ...
in May. The incident sparked major violence in several cities during 12–15 May. Property and businesses owned by Chinese Indonesians were targeted by mobs, and over 100 women were sexually assaulted; this aspect of the riots, though generally accepted as true, has been denied by several Indonesian groups. In the absence of security forces, large groups of men, women, and children looted and burned the numerous shopping malls in major cities. In Jakarta and Surakarta over 1,000 people—both Chinese and non-Chinese—died inside shopping malls. Tens of thousands of ethnic Chinese fled the country following these events, and bankers estimated that US$20 billion of capital had left the country in 1997–1999 to overseas destinations such as Singapore, Hong Kong, and the United States.


Social policy reforms (1999–present)

Suharto resigned on 21 May 1998, one week after he returned from a
Group of 15 The Group of 15 (G-15)Thofficial website adopts the "G-15" orthography (with a hyphen) in order to distinguish an abbreviated reference to this group -- contrasts with other similarly named entities. is an informal forum set up to foster coopera ...
meeting in
Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
, which took place during the riots. The reform government formed by his successor
Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie (; 25 June 1936 – 11 September 2019) was an Indonesian engineer and politician who was the third president of Indonesia from 1998 to 1999. Less than three months after his inauguration as the seventh vice preside ...
began a campaign to rebuild the confidence of Chinese Indonesians who had fled the country, particularly businessmen. Along with one of his envoys James Riady, son of financial magnate
Mochtar Riady Mochtar Riady, (; born 12 May 1929) also known as Lie Mon Tie, is an Indonesian financial magnate and the founder and chairman emeritus of Lippo Group. He was born in Malang to a Chinese Indonesian family. At five months old, his parents took ...
, Habibie appealed to Chinese Indonesians seeking refuge throughout East Asia, Australia, and North America to return and promised security from various government ministries as well as other political figures, such as
Abdurrahman Wahid Abdurrahman Wahid ( ; born Abdurrahman ad-Dakhil; 7 September 1940 – 30 December 2009), though more colloquially known as Gus Dur (), was an Indonesian politician and Islamic religious leader who served as the 4th president of Indonesia, fr ...
and Amien Rais. Despite Habibie's efforts he was met with skepticism because of remarks he made, as vice president and as president, which suggested that the message was insincere. One special envoy described Chinese Indonesians as the key to restoring "badly needed" capital and economic activity, prioritizing businessmen as the target of their pleas. Others, including economist
Kwik Kian Gie Kwik Kian Gie (; born 11 January 1935) is an Indonesian economist and politician who served as the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs from 1999 to 2000, the Minister of National Development Planning from 2001 to 2004, as well as briefl ...
, saw the government's efforts as perpetuating the myth of Chinese economic domination rather than affirming the ethnic Chinese identity. Symbolic reforms to Chinese Indonesian rights under Habibie's administration were made through two presidential instructions. The first abolished the use of the terms "''
pribumi Native Indonesians, also known as ''Pribumi'' (), are Indonesians whose ancestral roots lie mainly in the archipelago, distinguished from Indonesians of known (partial) foreign descent, like Chinese Indonesians (Tionghoa), Arab Indonesians, India ...
''" and "non-''pribumi''" in official government documents and business. The second abolished the ban on the study of
Mandarin Chinese Mandarin (; ) is a group of Chinese (Sinitic) dialects that are natively spoken across most of northern and southwestern China. The group includes the Beijing dialect, the basis of the phonology of Standard Chinese, the official language ...
and reaffirmed a 1996 instruction that abolished the use of the SBKRI to identify citizens of Chinese descent. Habibie established a task force to investigate the May 1998 violence, although his government later dismissed its findings. As an additional legal gesture Indonesia ratified the 1965
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) is a United Nations convention. A third -generation human rights instrument, the Convention commits its members to the elimination of racial discri ...
on 25 May 1999. In 2000 the newly elected President Wahid abolished the ban on public displays of Chinese culture and allowed Chinese traditions to be practised freely, without the need of a permit. Two years later President Megawati Sukarnoputri declared that the Chinese New Year (') would be marked as a national holiday from 2003. In addition to Habibie's directive on the term "pribumi", the legislature passed a new citizenship law in 2006 defining the word '' asli'' ("indigenous") in the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...
as a natural born person, allowing Chinese Indonesians to be eligible to run for president. The law further stipulates that children of foreigners born in Indonesia are eligible to apply for Indonesian citizenship. ) contest in Jakarta, 2016 , footer_background = , footer_align = , footer = Current culture and tradition of the Chinese, they are still retain the belief, tradition, and its religion until now. The post-Suharto era saw the end of discriminatory policy against Chinese Indonesians. Since then, numbers of Chinese Indonesians began to take part in the nation's politics, government and administrative sector. The Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono presidency (2004–2014) saw the first female Chinese Indonesian minister
Mari Elka Pangestu Mari Elka Pangestu (; born 23 October 1956), is an Indonesian economist who has been managing director of Development Policy and Partnerships in the World Bank since 2020. The President of the World Bank, David Malpass, announced her appointmen ...
as Minister of Trade (2004-2011) and Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy (2011-2014). Another notable Chinese Indonesian in Indonesian politics is Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, former Regent of East Belitung (2005–2006) and first
governor of Jakarta The Jakarta Special Capital Region is administratively equal to a province with special status as the capital of Indonesia. Instead of a mayor, the executive head of Jakarta is a governor. The governor of Jakarta is an elected politician who, alon ...
(2014–2017) of Chinese descent. However, discrimination and prejudice against Chinese Indonesians continues in the 21st century. On 15 March 2016, Indonesian Army General Suryo Prabowo commented that the incumbent governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, should "know his place lest the Indonesian Chinese face the consequences of his action". This controversial comment was considered to hearken back to previous violence against the Indonesian Chinese. On 9 May 2017, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama was sentenced to two years in prison after being found guilty of committing a criminal act of blasphemy, a move that was widely criticized by many as an attack on free speech.


Origins

Chinese immigrants to the Indonesian archipelago almost entirely originated from various ethnic groups especially the
Tanka people The Tankas or boat people are a sinicised ethnic group in Southern China who have traditionally lived on junks in coastal parts of Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Hainan, Shanghai, Zhejiang and along the Yangtze river, as well as Hong Kong ...
of what are now the
Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its cap ...
and
Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
provinces in southern China, areas known for their regional diversity. Nearly all Chinese Indonesians are either
patrilineal Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritan ...
descendants of these early immigrants or new immigrants born in
mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
. The first group of Chinese people to settle in large numbers to escape the coastal ban were the most affected Tanka boat people, other came in much smaller numbers,
Teochews The Teochew people or Chaoshan people (rendered Têo-Swa in romanized Teoswa and Chaoshan in Standard Chinese also known as Teo-Swa in mainland China due to a change in place names) is anyone native to the historical Chaoshan region in south ...
from Chaozhou, the
Hakkas The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan ...
from Chengxiang county (now renamed Meixian), Huizhou (pronounced Fuizhew in Hakka) and rural county of Dabu (pronounced Thaipo in Hakka), the
Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...
from Guangdong and various different ethnic dialect groups who left the trading city ports of southern Fujian including the ethnic
Tanka is a genre of classical Japanese poetry and one of the major genres of Japanese literature. Etymology Originally, in the time of the '' Man'yōshū'' (latter half of the eighth century AD), the term ''tanka'' was used to distinguish "short p ...
, Hakkas, etc. Descendants of Hokkien Tanka are the dominant group in eastern Indonesia,
Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and
East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...
and the western coast of Sumatra.
Teochews The Teochew people or Chaoshan people (rendered Têo-Swa in romanized Teoswa and Chaoshan in Standard Chinese also known as Teo-Swa in mainland China due to a change in place names) is anyone native to the historical Chaoshan region in south ...
, southern neighbors of the Hokkien, are found throughout the eastern coast of Sumatra, in the
Riau Archipelago The Riau Archipelago is a ''geographic'' term (as opposed to administrative region) for the core group of islands within the Riau Islands Province in Indonesia, and located south of Singapore and east of Riau on Sumatra. Before the province of R ...
, and in western Borneo. They were preferred as plantation laborers in Sumatra but have become traders in regions where the Hokkien are not well represented. From 1628 to 1740, there were more 100,000 Hakkas from Huizhou living in Batavia and Java island. The
Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
, unlike the Hokkien and the Teochew, originate from the mountainous inland regions of Guangdong and do not have a maritime culture. Owing to the unproductive terrain of their home region, the Hakka emigrated out of economic necessity in several waves from 1850 to 1930 and were the poorest of the Chinese immigrant groups. Although they initially populated the mining centers of western Borneo and
Bangka Island Bangka is an island lying east of Sumatra, Indonesia. It is administered under the province of the Bangka Belitung Islands, being one of its namesakes alongside the smaller island of Belitung across the Gaspar Strait. The 9th largest island in ...
, Hakkas became attracted to the rapid growth of Batavia and
West Java West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...
in the late 19th century. The Cantonese people, like the Hakka, were well known throughout Southeast Asia as mineworkers. Their migration in the 19th century was largely directed toward the
tin Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal. Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
mines of Bangka, off the east coast of Sumatra. Notable traditionally as skilled artisans, the Cantonese benefited from close contact with Europeans in Guangdong and Hong Kong by learning about machinery and industrial success. They migrated to Java about the same time as the Hakka but for different reasons. In Indonesia's cities, they became artisans, machine workers, and owners of small businesses such as restaurants and hotel-keeping services. The Cantonese are evenly dispersed throughout the archipelago and number far less than the Hokkien or the Hakka. Consequently, their roles are of secondary importance in the Chinese communities.


Demographics

Indonesia's 2000 census reported 2,411,503 citizens (1.20 percent of the total population) as ethnic Chinese. An additional 93,717 (0.05 percent) ethnic Chinese living in Indonesia were reported as foreign citizens, mostly those of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China, who may not be able to pay the cost of becoming an Indonesian citizen. Because the census employed the method of self-identification, those who refused to identify themselves as ethnic Chinese, or had assumed the identity of other ethnic groups, either because of assimilation or mixed-parentage, or fear of persecution, were recorded as non-Chinese. It is also likely that there are around 2.8 millions Chinese living in Indonesia according to several external estimates. Past estimates on the exact number of Chinese Indonesians relied on the 1930 Dutch East Indies census, which collected direct information on ethnicity. This census reported 1.23 million self-identified ethnic Chinese living in the colony, representing 2.03 percent of the total population, and was perceived to be an accurate account of the group's population. Ethnic information would not be collected again until the 2000 census and so was deduced from other census data, such as language spoken and religious affiliation, during the intermediate years. In an early survey of the Chinese Indonesian minority, anthropologist
G. William Skinner George William Skinner (; February 14, 1925 – October 26, 2008) was an American anthropologist and scholar of China. Skinner was a proponent of the spatial approach to Chinese history, as explained in his Presidential Address to the Associat ...
estimated that between 2.3 million (2.4 percent) and 2.6 million (2.7 percent) lived in Indonesia in 1961. Former foreign minister
Adam Malik Adam Malik Batubara (22 July 1917 – 5 September 1984), or more commonly referred to simply as Adam Malik, was an Indonesian politician, diplomat, and journalist, who served as the 3rd Vice President of Indonesia from 1978 until 1983, under ...
provided a figure of 5 million in a report published in the '' Harian Indonesia'' daily in 1973. Many media and academic sources subsequently estimated between 4 and 5 percent of the total population as ethnic Chinese regardless of the year. Estimates during the 2000s have placed the figure between 6 and 7 million, and the Overseas Compatriot Affairs Commission of the Republic of China estimated a population as high as 7.67 million in 2006. According to 2010 population census, 22.3 percent of Chinese Indonesians lived in the capital city of Jakarta, located on the island of Java. When the island's other provinces—
Banten Banten ( id, Banten; Sundanese: , romanized ''Banten'') is the westernmost province on the island of Java, Indonesia. Its capital city is Serang. The province borders West Java and the Special Capital Region of Jakarta on the east, the Ja ...
, West Java, Central Java,
Yogyakarta Yogyakarta (; jv, ꦔꦪꦺꦴꦒꦾꦏꦂꦠ ; pey, Jogjakarta) is the capital city of Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, ...
, and East Java—are included, this population accounted for around half (51.8 percent) of all Chinese Indonesians. This data does not count the number of ethnic Chinese that have foreign citizenship. 8.15 percent of West Kalimantan's population is ethnic Chinese, followed by Bangka–Belitung Islands (8.14 percent), Riau Islands (7.66 percent), Jakarta (6.58 percent), North Sumatra (5,75 percent), Riau (1.84 percent). In each of the remaining provinces, Chinese Indonesians account for 1 percent or less of the provincial population. Most Chinese Indonesians in North Sumatra lived in the provincial capital of
Medan Medan (; English: ) is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of North Sumatra, as well as a regional hub and financial centre of Sumatra. According to the National Development Planning Agency, Medan is one of the four mai ...
; they are one of major ethnic groups in the city with the Bataks and Javanese people, but in the province, they constituted only a small percentage because of the relatively large population of the province, the sizeable Chinese population also has presence in Binjai, Tanjungbalai and
Pematangsiantar Pematangsiantar (sometimes written as Pematang Siantar, acronym PS or ''P. Siantar'', colloquially just Siantar), is an independent city in North Sumatra, Indonesia, surrounded by, but not part of, the Simalungun Regency, making Pematangsiantar a ...
city. Bangka–Belitung, West Kalimantan, and Riau are grouped around the hub of ethnic Chinese economic activity in
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
and, with the exception of Bangka–Belitung, these settlements existed long before Singapore's founding in 1819. The ethnic Chinese population in Indonesia grew by an average of 4.3 percent annually between 1920 and 1930. It then slowed owing to the effects of the Great Depression and many areas experienced a net emigration. Falling growth rates were also attributed to a significant decrease in the number of Chinese immigrants admitted into Indonesia since the 1950s. The population is relatively old according to the 2000 census, having the lowest percentage of population under 14 years old nationwide and the second-highest percentage of population over 65. Their
population pyramid A population pyramid (age structure diagram) or "age-sex pyramid" is a graphical illustration of the distribution of a population (typically that of a country or region of the world) by age groups and sex; it typically takes the shape of a pyramid ...
had a narrow base with a rapid increase until the 15–19 age group, indicating a rapid decline in
total fertility rate The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if: # she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime # she were t ...
s. This was evidenced by a decline in the absolute number of births since 1980. In Jakarta and West Java the population peak occurred in the 20–24 age group, indicating that the decline in fertility rates began as early as 1975. The upper portion of the pyramid exhibited a smooth decline with increasing population age. It is estimated that 60.7 percent of the Chinese Indonesian population in 2000 constitutes the generation that experienced political and social pressures under the New Order government. With an average life expectancy of 75 years, those who spent their formative years prior to this regime will completely disappear by 2032. According to the last 2010 population census, the self-identified Chinese Indonesian population is 2,832,510. There is a growth of 17.5% from 2000 census, although some of them are because the census bureau improved its counting methodology between 2000 and 2010. During the 2000 census, it only published data for the eight largest ethnic groups in each province. Because Chinese Indonesians in some provinces did not have a large enough population, they were left off the list. This error was only corrected in 2008 when Aris Ananta, Evi Nuridya Arifin, and Bakhtiar from the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore published a report that accounted for all Chinese Indonesian populations using raw data from BPS.


Emigrant communities

Emigration by Chinese Indonesians became significant after Indonesian independence in 1945. Large numbers of Chinese Indonesians repatriated to China, Taiwan and Hong Kong throughout the following years, while others moved to more industrialized regions around the world. Although these migrants have Chinese ancestry, they were often not identified as such; this trend has continued into the modern day. There have been several independent estimates made of the Chinese Indonesian population living in other countries.
James Jupp James Jupp AM (born 1932) was a British-Australian political scientist and author. He was Director of the Centre for Immigration and Multicultural Studies in the Research School of Social Sciences at the Australian National University and an A ...
's ''The Australian People'' encyclopedia estimated that half of over 30,000 Indonesians living in Australia in the late 1990s are ethnic Chinese, and they have since merged with other Chinese communities. In New Zealand, many migrants reside in the suburbs of
Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...
after some 1,500 sought asylum from the 1998 upheaval, of which two-thirds were granted residency. Australian scholar Charles Coppel believes Chinese Indonesian migrants also constitute a large majority of returned overseas Chinese living in Hong Kong. Though it is impossible to accurately count this number, news sources have provided estimates ranging from 100,000 to 150,000, while the estimate of 150,000 was published in the ''
Hong Kong Standard ''The Standard'' is an English-language free newspaper in Hong Kong with a daily circulation of 200,450 in 2012. It was formerly called the ''Hongkong Standard'' and changed to ''HKiMail'' during the Internet boom but partially reverted to ''T ...
'' on 21 December 1984. . Of the 57,000 Indonesians living in the United States in 2000, one-third were estimated to be ethnic Chinese. Locally knowledgeable migrants in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...
estimate that 60 percent of
Indonesian American Indonesian Americans are migrants from the multiethnic country of Indonesia to the United States, and their U.S.-born descendants. In both the 2000 and 2010 United States census, they were the 15th largest group of Asian Americans recorded in th ...
s living in the area are of Chinese descent. In Canada, only a minority of the emigrant Chinese Indonesian community speak Chinese. Although families are interested in rediscovering their ethnic traditions, their Canadian-born children are often reluctant to learn either Chinese mother tongue.


Society

Scholars who study Chinese Indonesians often distinguish members of the group according to their racial and sociocultural background: the "''totok''" and the "''peranakan''". The two terms were initially used to racially distinguish the pure-blooded Chinese from those with mixed ancestry. A secondary meaning to the terms later arose that meant the "''totok''" were born in China and anyone born in Indonesia was considered "''peranakan''". Segmentation within "''totok''" communities occurs through division in speech groups, a pattern that has become less apparent since the turn of the 20th century. Among the indigenized "''peranakan''" segmentation occurs through social class, which is graded according to education and family standing rather than wealth.


Gender and kinship

Kinship structure in the "''totok''" community follows the
patrilineal Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritan ...
,
patrilocal In social anthropology, patrilocal residence or patrilocality, also known as virilocal residence or virilocality, are terms referring to the social system in which a married couple resides with or near the husband's parents. The concept of locat ...
, and patriarchal traditions of Chinese society, a practice which has lost emphasis in "''peranakan''" familial relationships. Instead, kinship patterns in indigenized families have incorporated elements of Matrilocal residence, matrilocal, Matrilineality, matrilineal, and Matriarchy, matrifocal traditions found in Javanese society. Within this community, both sons and daughters can inherit the family fortune, including ancestral tablets and ashes. Political, social, and economic authority in "''peranakan''" families is more evenly distributed between the two genders than in "''totok''" families. Kin terms do not distinguish between maternal and paternal relatives and polygyny is strongly frowned upon. Western influence in "''peranakan''" society is evidenced by the high proportion of childless couples. Those who did have children also had fewer of them than "''totok''" couples. Despite their break from traditional kinship patterns, "''peranakan''" families are closer to some traditional Chinese values than the "''totok''". Because the indigenized population have lost much of the connection to their ancestral homes in the coastal provinces of China, they are less affected by the 20th-century modernization patterns that transformed the region. The "''peranakan''" have a stricter attitude toward divorce, though the separation rates among families in both segments are generally lower than other ethnic groups. Arranged marriages are more common in "peranakan" families, whose relationships tend to be more Nepotism, nepotistic. Secularization among the "totok" meant that their counterparts carry out ancestral rituals to a higher degree, and "peranakan" youth tend to be more religious. Through education provided by high-quality Catholic and Protestant schools, these youth are much more likely to convert to Christianity. In the 21st century, the conceptual differences of "''totok''" and "''peranakan''" Chinese are slowly becoming outdated as some families show a mixture of characteristics from both cultures. Interracial marriage and cultural assimilation often prevent the formation a precise definition of Chinese Indonesians in line with any simple racial criterion. Use of a Chinese surname, in some form or circumstance, is generally a sign of cultural self-identification as ethnic Chinese or alignment with a Chinese social system.


Identity

Ethnic Chinese in the 1930 Dutch East Indies census were categorized as foreign orientals, which led to separate registration. Citizenship was conferred upon the ethnic Chinese through a 1946 citizenship act after Indonesia became independent, and it was further reaffirmed in 1949 and 1958. However, they often encountered obstacles regarding the legality of their citizenship. Chinese Indonesians were required to produce an Proof of Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia, Indonesian Citizenship Certificate (', SBKRI) when conducting business with government officials. Without the SBKRI, they were not able to make passports and Indonesian identity card, identity cards (', KTP); register birth, death, and marriage certificates; or register a business license. The requirement for its use was abolished in 1996 through a presidential instruction which was reaffirmed in 1999, but media sources reported that local authorities were still demanding the SBKRI from Chinese Indonesians after the instructions went into effect. Other terms used for identifying sectors of the community include ' and '. The former, traditionally used to describe those born locally, is derived from the root Indonesian language, Indonesian word ' ("child") and thus means "child of the land". The latter is derived from Javanese language, Javanese, meaning "new" or "pure", and is used to describe the foreign born and new immigrants. A significant number of Chinese Indonesians also live in the People's Republic of China and Hong Kong; they are considered part of the population of "returned overseas Chinese" (). To identify the varying sectors of Chinese Indonesian society, Tan contends they must be differentiated according to nationality into those who are citizens of the host country and those who are Alien (law), resident aliens, then further broken down according to their cultural orientation and social identification. In her doctoral dissertation, Aimee Dawis notes that such definitions, based on cultural affinity and not nation of origin, have gained currency since the early 1990s, although the old definition is occasionally used. Sociologist Mely G. Tan asserts that scholars studying ethnic Chinese emigrants often refer to the group as a "monolithic entity": the overseas Chinese. Such treatment also persists in Indonesia; a majority of the population referred to them as ' or ' (both meaning "Chinese people", ), or ' (). They were previously described in Ethnography, ethnographic literature as the Indonesian Chinese, but there has been a shift in terminology as the old description emphasizes the group's Chinese origins, while the more recent one, its Indonesian integration. Aimee Dawis, citing prominent scholar Leo Suryadinata, believes the shift is "necessary to debunk the stereotype that they are an exclusive group" and also "promotes a sense of nationalism" among them.


Economic aptitude

Members of the "totok" community are more inclined to be entrepreneurs and adhere to the practice of ''guanxi'', which is based on the idea that one's existence is influenced by the connection to others, implying the importance of business connections. In the first decade following Indonesian independence their business standing strengthened after being limited to small businesses in the colonial period. By the 1950s virtually all Retailing, retail stores in Indonesia were owned by ethnic Chinese entrepreneurs, whose businesses ranged from selling Grocery store, groceries to construction material. Discontentment soon grew among indigenous merchants who felt unable to compete with ethnic Chinese businesses. Under pressure from indigenous merchants, the government enacted the Benteng program and PP 10/1959, Presidential Regulation 10 of 1959, which imposed restrictions on ethnic Chinese importers and rural retailers. Ethnic Chinese businesses persisted, owing to their integration into larger networks throughout Southeast Asia, and their dominance continued despite continuous state and private efforts to encourage the growth of indigenous capital. Indonesian Chinese businesses are part of the larger bamboo network, a network of overseas Chinese businesses operating in the markets of Southeast Asia that share common family and cultural ties. Government policies shifted dramatically after 1965, becoming more favorable to economic expansion. In an effort to rehabilitate the economy, the government turned to those who possessed the capability to invest and expand corporate activity. Ethnic Chinese capitalists, called the ', were supported by the military, which emerged as the dominant political force after 1965. Indigenous businessmen once again demanded greater investment support from the government in the 1970s, but legislative efforts failed to reduce ethnic Chinese dominance. In a 1995 study published by the East Asia Analytical Unit of Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia), Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, approximately 73 percent of the market capitalization value of Public company, publicly listed companies (excluding foreign and state-owned companies) were owned by Chinese Indonesians. Additionally, they owned 68 percent of the top 300 conglomerates and nine of the top ten private sector groups at the end of 1993. This figure propagated the general belief that ethnic Chinese—then estimated at 3 percent of the population—controlled 70 percent of the economy. Although the accuracy of this figure was disputed, it was evident that a Income inequality metrics, wealth disparity existed along ethnic boundaries. The image of an economically powerful ethnic Chinese community was further fostered by the government through its inability to dissociate itself from the patronage networks. The Fuzhou people, Hokchia group dominated the ethnic Chinese business scene during the Suharto government, although other groups emerged after 1998. The top five conglomerates in Indonesia prior to the 1997 Asian financial crisis—the Salim Group, Astra International, the Sinar Mas Group, Gudang Garam, Sampoerna and the Lippo Group—were all owned by ethnic Chinese, with annual sales totaling Indonesian rupiah, Rp112 trillion (US$47 billion). When the crisis finally hit the country, the rupiah's plunge severely disrupted corporate operations. Numerous conglomerates lost a majority of their assets and collapsed. Over the next several years, other conglomerates struggled to repay international and domestic debts. Reforms introduced following 1998 were meant to steer the economy away from Oligarchy, oligarchic arrangements established under the New Order; however, plans for reform proved too optimistic. When President B. J. Habibie announced in a 19 July 1998 interview with ''The Washington Post'' that Indonesia was not dependent on ethnic Chinese businessmen, the rupiah's value plunged 5 percent. This unexpected reaction prompted immediate changes in policies, and Habibie soon began enticing conglomerates for their support in the reform plans. Most were initially fearful of democratization, but the process of social demarginalization meant that the ethnic Chinese were regarded as equal members of society for the first time in the nation's history. Increased regional autonomy allowed surviving conglomerates to explore new opportunities in the outer provinces, and economic reforms created a freer market.


Political activity

Between the 18th and early 20th centuries, ethnic Chinese communities were dominated by the "peranakan" presence. This period was followed by the growth of "totok" society. As part of a Sinicization, resinicization effort by the indigenized ethnic Chinese community, a new pan-Chinese movement emerged with the goal of a unified Chinese political identity. The movement later split in the 1920s when "peranakan" elites resisted the leadership of the "totok" in the nationalist movement, and the two groups developed their own objectives. When it became apparent that unification was being achieved on "totok" terms, "peranakan" leaders chose to align their community with the Dutch, who had abandoned the segregation policies in 1908. The two communities once again found common ground in opposition to the invading Japanese when the occupying forces treated all Chinese groups with contempt. The issue of nationality, following independence, politicized the ethnic Chinese and led to the formation of Baperki in 1954, as the first and largest Chinese Indonesian mass organization. Baperki and its majority "peranakan" membership led the opposition against a draft law that would have restricted the number of ethnic Chinese who could gain Indonesian citizenship. This movement was met by the Islamic Masyumi Party in 1956 when it called for the implementation of affirmative action for indigenous businesses. During the 1955 Indonesian legislative election, 1955 legislative election, Baperki received 178,887 votes and gained a seat on the People's Representative Council (DPR). Later that year, two Baperki candidates were also 1955 Indonesian Constituent Assembly election, elected to the Constitutional Assembly of Indonesia, Constitutional Assembly. Ethnic-based political parties were banned under the government of President Suharto, leaving only the three indigenous-dominated parties of Golkar, the United Development Party (PPP), and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI). The depoliticizing of Indonesian society confined ethnic Chinese activities to the economic sector. Chinese Indonesian critics of the regime were mostly "peranakan" and projected themselves as Indonesians, leaving the ethnic Chinese with no visible leaders. On the eve of the 1999 Indonesian legislative election, 1999 legislative election, after Suharto's resignation, the news magazine ''Tempo (Indonesia magazine), Tempo'' conducted a survey of likely Chinese Indonesian voters on their political party of choice for the election. Although respondents were able to choose more than one party, 70 percent favored the Indonesian Democratic Party – Struggle (PDI–P), whose image of a nationalist party was considered favorable toward the ethnic Chinese. The party also benefited from the presence of economist
Kwik Kian Gie Kwik Kian Gie (; born 11 January 1935) is an Indonesian economist and politician who served as the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs from 1999 to 2000, the Minister of National Development Planning from 2001 to 2004, as well as briefl ...
, who was well respected by both ethnic Chinese and non-ethnic-Chinese voters. New ethnic political parties such as the Chinese Indonesian Reform Party (', PARTI) and the Indonesian Bhinneka Tunggal Ika Party (', PBI) failed to garner much support in the 1999 election. Despite this result, the number of Chinese Indonesian candidates standing in national election increased from fewer than 50 in 1999 to almost 150 in 2004. Of the 58 candidates of Chinese descent who ran for office as representatives from Jakarta in the 2009 Indonesian legislative election, 2009 legislative election, two won seats.


Culture


Language

Four major Chinese-speech groups are represented in Indonesia: Hokkien (Southern Min; Min Nan)福建話 or 閩南話, Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin 北京話 or 華語, Hakka Chinese, Hakka 客家話 and Cantonese 廣東話. In addition to these, the Teochew people speak Teochew dialect, their own dialect 潮州話 that has some degree of mutual intelligibility with Hokkien. Distinctions between the two, however, are accentuated outside of their regions of origin. There were an estimated 2.2 million native speakers of various Chinese varieties in Indonesia in 1982: 1,300,000 speakers of Southern Min varieties (including Hokkien and Teochew dialect, Teochew); 640,000 Hakka speakers; 460,000 Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin speakers; 180,000 Cantonese speakers; and 20,000 speakers of the Eastern Min varieties (including Fuzhou dialect 福州話). Additionally, an estimated 20,000 spoke different dialects of the Indonesian language. Many of the Chinese living in capital city Jakarta and other towns located in Java are not fluent in Chinese languages, due to New Order's banning of Chinese languages, but those who are living in non-Java cities especially in Sumatra and Kalimantan can speak Chinese and its dialects fluently. The Chinese along the North-Eastern coast of Sumatra, especially in North Sumatra, Riau, Riau Islands and Jambi are predominantly Hokkien (Min Nan) speakers, and there are also two different variants of Hokkien being used, such as Medan Hokkien, which is based on the Zhangzhou dialect, and Riau Hokkien, which is based on the Quanzhou dialect. There are also Hokkien speakers in Java (Semarang, Surakarta etc.), Sulawesi and Kalimantan (Borneo). Meanwhile, the Hakkas are the majority in Aceh, Bangka-Belitung and north region in West Kalimantan like Singkawang, Pemangkat and Mempawah, several Hakka communities also live in parts of Java especially in Tangerang and Jakarta. The Cantonese peoples mainly living in big cities like Jakarta,
Medan Medan (; English: ) is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of North Sumatra, as well as a regional hub and financial centre of Sumatra. According to the National Development Planning Agency, Medan is one of the four mai ...
, Batam, Surabaya, Pontianak, Indonesia, Pontianak and Manado. The Teochew people are the majority within Chinese community in West Kalimantan, especially in Central to Southern areas such as Ketapang, Kendawangan, and Pontianak, Indonesia, Pontianak, as well as in the Riau Islands, which include Batam and Karimun Islands, Karimun. There are sizable communities of Fuzhou people, Hokchia or Foochownese speakers in
East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...
, especially in Surabaya. The Hainanese people can also found in
Pematangsiantar Pematangsiantar (sometimes written as Pematang Siantar, acronym PS or ''P. Siantar'', colloquially just Siantar), is an independent city in North Sumatra, Indonesia, surrounded by, but not part of, the Simalungun Regency, making Pematangsiantar a ...
in North Sumatra. Many Indonesians, including the ethnic Chinese, believe in the existence of a dialect of the Malay language, Chinese Malay, known locally as ' or '. The growth of "peranakan" literature in the second half of the 19th century gave rise to such a variant, popularized through ''silat'' (martial arts) stories translated from Chinese or written in Malay and Indonesian. However, scholars argue it is different from the mixture of spoken Javanese language, Javanese and Malay that is perceived to be "spoken exclusively by ethnic Chinese". According to Ellen Rafferty, in
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
, the ''peranakan'' generally started to speak Malay trade and creole languages, "Low Malay" [Bazaar Malay] and some Javanese language, Javanese at home before 1800, while used the Malay trade and creole languages, "Low Malay" for extra-local communication. The ''peranakan'' showed the usage of some Javanese language, Javanese in written communication since 1800. The spoken Javanese language, Javanese was later identified as ''ngoko'' variant. After 1880, the written Javanese language, Javanese was replaced by written Malay trade and creole languages, "Low Malay". Since 1945, the ''peranakan'' use Indonesian language, Indonesianised-Javanese language, Javanese in home, supplanted by ''ngoko'' Javanese language, Javanese in local speech and Indonesian language, Indonesian in extra-local communication and writing. Academic literature discussing Chinese Malay commonly note that ethnic Chinese do not speak the same dialect of Malay throughout the archipelago. Furthermore, although the Dutch colonial government first introduced the Malay orthography in 1901, Chinese newspapers did not follow this standard until after independence. Because of these factors, the ethnic Chinese play a "significant role" in the development of the modern Indonesian language as the largest group during the colonial period to communicate in a variety of Malay dialects. By 2018 the numbers of Chinese Indonesians studying Standard Mandarin increased.


Literature

Chinese cultural influences can be seen in local Chinese Malay literature, which dates back to the late 19th century. One of the earliest and most comprehensive works on this subject, Claudine Salmon, Claudine Salmon's 1981 book ''Literature in Malay by the Chinese of Indonesia: A Provisional Annotated Bibliography'', lists over 3,000 works. Samples of this literature were also published in a six-volume collection titled ' ("Chinese Malay Literature and the Indonesian Nation"). Kho Ping Hoo or Asmaraman Sukowati Kho Ping Hoo is a beloved Indonesian author of Overseas Chinese, Chinese ethnicity. He is well known in Indonesia for his martial art fiction set in the background of China or
Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
. During his 30 years career, at least 120 stories has been published (according to Leo Suryadinata). However, ''Forum (Indonesian magazine), Forum'' magazine claimed at least Kho Ping Hoo had 400 stories with the background of China and 50 stories with the background of Java.


Media

All Chinese-language publications were prohibited under the assimilation policy of the Suharto period, with the exception of the government-controlled daily newspaper '' Harian Indonesia''. The lifting of the Chinese-language ban after 1998 prompted the older generation of Chinese Indonesians to promote its use to the younger generation; according to Malaysian-Chinese researcher of the Chinese diaspora, Chang-Yau Hoon, they believed they would "be influenced by the virtues of Chinese culture and Confucianism, Confucian values". One debate took place in the media in 2003, discussing the Chinese "mu yu" (, "mother tongue") and the Indonesian "guo yu" (, "national language"). Nostalgia was a common theme in the Chinese-language press in the period immediately following Suharto's government. The rise of China's political and economic standing at the turn of the 21st century became an impetus for their attempt to attract younger readers who seek to rediscover their cultural roots. During the first three decades of the 20th century, ethnic Chinese owned most, if not all, movie theaters in cities throughout the Dutch East Indies. Films from China were being imported by the 1920s, and a film industry began to emerge in 1928 with the arrival of the three Wong brothers from Shanghai—their films would dominate the market through the 1930s. These earliest films almost exclusively focused on the ethnic Chinese community, although a few examined Miscegenation, inter-ethnic relations as a main theme. The later ban on the public use of Chinese language meant that imported films and television programs were required to be dubbed in English with Subtitle (captioning), subtitles in Indonesian. When martial arts serials began appearing on national television in 1988, they were dubbed in Indonesian. One exception was the showing of films from Hong Kong in Chinese—limited to ethnic Chinese districts and their surroundings—because of an agreement between importers and the film censor board.


Religion

There is little scholarly work devoted to the religious life of Chinese Indonesians. The 1977 French book ' ("The Chinese of Jakarta: Temples and Collective Life") is the only major study to assess ethnic Chinese religious life in Indonesia. The Ministry of Religious Affairs grants official status to six religions: Islam in Indonesia, Islam, Protestantism in Indonesia, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism in Indonesia, Catholicism, Hinduism in Indonesia, Hinduism, Buddhism in Indonesia, Buddhism, and Confucianism in Indonesia, Confucianism. A 2006 civil registration law does not allow Indonesians to identify themselves as a member of any other religion on their identity cards. According to an analysis of the 2000 census data, about half of Chinese Indonesians were Buddhists, and about one third Protestant or Catholic. A report by ''The New York Times'', however, puts the percentage of Christians much higher, at over 70 percent. With the exception of Chinese-Filipinos, Chinese Indonesians tend to be more Christian than other Chinese ethnic groups of Southeast Asia due to a complex of historical reasons. Throughout the 20th century Chinese folk religion, Chinese religion and
culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...
was forbidden and heavily persecuted in Indonesia, forcing many Chinese to convert to Christianity.Tim Lindsey, Helen Pausacker. ''Chinese Indonesians: Remembering, Distorting, Forgetting''. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2005. . p. 89. The first wave of conversions occurred in the 1950s and 1960s, and the number of ethnic Chinese Christians during this period quadrupled. The second wave followed after the government withdrew Confucianism's status as a recognized religion in the 1970s. Suharto endorsed a systematic campaign of eradication of Confucianism. As the result, many Chinese in Jakarta and other parts in Java Island, Java island are mostly Christian, meanwhile in non-Java cities like
Medan Medan (; English: ) is the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of North Sumatra, as well as a regional hub and financial centre of Sumatra. According to the National Development Planning Agency, Medan is one of the four mai ...
, Pontianak and other parts in Sumatra and
Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
island are mainly adherents to Buddhism, and some of them still practising Taoism, Confucianism and other Chinese folk religion in Southeast Asia, Traditional Chinese belief. In a country where nearly 86 percent of the population are Muslims, the ethnic Chinese Muslims form a very small minority of the ethnic Chinese population, mainly due to intermarriages between Chinese men and local Muslim women. The 2010 census reckoned that 4.7% of Chinese Indonesians were followers of Islam. Associations such as the Organization of Chinese Muslims of Indonesia (', PITI) had been in existence in the late 19th century. PITI was re-established in 1963 as a modern organization, but occasionally experienced periods of inactivity. The Supreme Council for the Confucian Religion in Indonesia (', MATAKIN) estimated that 95 percent of Confucians are ethnic Chinese; most of the remaining 5 percent are ethnic Javanese, who are mainly Chinese people, Chinese-Javanese people, Javanese marriages converts. Although the government has restored Confucianism's status as a recognized religion, many local authorities do not abide by it and have refused to allow ethnic Chinese from listing it as a religion on their identity cards. Local officials remained largely unaware that the civil registration law legally allowed citizens to leave the religion section on their identity cards blank. File:Inside Kwan Sing Bio Temple, Tuban, East Java, Indonesia.jpg, ''Kwan Sing Bio'' Taoist temple in Tuban Regency,
East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...
File:Confucian Temple in TMII, Jakarta.jpg, Kong Miao Confucian Temple in Taman Mini Indonesia Indah, Jakarta File:Vihara Eka Dharma Manggala Samarinda.jpg, ''Vihara Eka Dharma Manggala'', a Buddhist Temple in Samarinda, East Kalimantan File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Kerk van Chinese christenen in Djakarta TMnr 10016580.jpg, ''Geredja Keristen Tionghoa'' or Chinese Christian Church in Jakarta, c.1952 File:Cheng ho.jpg, ''Cheng Ho Mosque'' in Surabaya,
East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...


Architecture

Various forms of Chinese architecture exist throughout Indonesia with marked differences between urban and rural areas and among the different islands. Architectural developments by the Chinese in Southeast Asia differ from those in mainland China. By blending local and European (Dutch) design patterns, numerous variations of fusion styles emerged. Chinese architecture in Indonesia has manifested in three forms: Temple (Chinese), religious temples, study halls, and houses. Cities during the colonial period were divided into three racial districts: European, oriental (Arabs, Chinese, and other Asians), and indigenous. There usually were no physical boundaries among the zones, except for rivers, walls, or roads in some cases. Such legal boundaries promoted high growths in urban density within each zone, especially in the Chinese quarters, often leading to poor environmental conditions. Early settlers did not adhere to traditional architectural practices when constructing houses, but instead adapted to living conditions in Indonesia. Although the earliest houses are no longer standing, they were likely built from wood or bamboo with Thatching, thatched roofs, resembling indigenous houses found throughout Sumatra, Borneo, and Java. More permanent constructions replaced these settlements in the 19th century. Segregation policies under the Dutch forbade the use of European architectural styles by non-European ethnic groups. The ethnic Chinese and other foreign and indigenous groups lived according to their own cultures. Chinese houses along the north coast of Java were renovated to include Chinese ornamentation. As racial segregation eased at the turn of the 20th century, the ethnic Chinese who had lost their identity embraced European culture and began removing ethnic ornaments from their buildings. The policies implemented by the New Order government which prohibited the public display of Chinese culture have also accelerated the transition toward local and Western architecture.


Cuisine

Chinese culinary culture is particularly evident in Indonesian cuisine through the Hokkien, Hakka, and Cantonese loanwords used for various dishes. Words beginning with ' () signify the presence of meat, e.g. ' ("Baozi, meat bun"); words ending with ' () signify vegetables, e.g. ' ("Chinese cabbage, Chinese white cabbage") and '. The words ' () signify noodle as in '. Most of these loanwords for food dishes and their ingredients are Hokkien in origin, and are used throughout the Indonesian language and vernacular speech of large cities. Because they have become an integral part of the local language, many Indonesians and ethnic Chinese do not recognize their Hokkien origins. Some popular Indonesian dishes such as nasi goreng, pempek, lumpia, and Bakpia Pathok, bakpia can trace their origin to Chinese influence. Some food and ingredients are part of the daily diet of both the indigenous and ethnic Chinese populations as side dishes to accompany rice, the staple food of most of the country. Among ethnic Chinese families, both ''peranakan'' and ''totok'', pork is generally preferred as meat; this is in contrast with traditional Indonesian cuisine, which in majority-Muslim areas avoids the meat. The consumption of pork has, however, decreased in recent years owing to a recognition of its contribution to health hazards such as Hypercholesterolemia, high cholesterol levels and heart disease. In a 1997 restaurant listing published by the English-language daily ''The Jakarta Post'', which largely caters to expatriates and middle class Indonesians, at least 80 locations within the city can be considered Chinese out of the 10-page list. Additionally, major hotels generally operate one or two Chinese restaurants, and many more can be found in large shopping centers. Upscale Chinese restaurants in Jakarta, where the urban character of the ethnic Chinese is well established, can be found serving delicacies such as shark fin soup and bird's nest soup. Food considered to have healing properties, including ingredients in traditional Chinese medicine, are in high demand.


Education

Citizens of Taiwan (officially known as the Republic of China) residing in Indonesia are served by two international schools:Overseas Schools

Archive
. Taiwanese Ministry of Education. Retrieved on 10 January 2016.
Jakarta Taipei School (印尼雅加達臺灣學校), which was the first Chinese-language school in Indonesia since the Indonesian government ended its ban on the Chinese language, and the Surabaya Taipei International School (印尼泗水臺灣學校).


Popular Culture


Geography

Warung Buncit is name of an area in South Jakarta (also known as Jalan AH Nasution) that took its origin from Chinese Indonesian profile name Bun Tjit. Zaenuddin HM wrote in his book "212 Asal-Usul Djakarta Tempo Doeloe" that the name was inspired by a local shop (Warung in Indonesian language) ran by a Chinese Indonesia name Bun Tjit (styled Buncit). The shop was so famous among the local that the locals began to call the area Warung Buncit (Buncit's Shop). The area had been known as Warung Buncit ever since.


See also

* Chen Fu Zhen Ren * Chinese folk religion in Southeast Asia * Supreme Council for the Confucian Religion in Indonesia * Kong Koan & Tiong Hoa Hwee Koan * Benteng Chinese * Chinese in the Bangka Belitung Islands * Ashin Jinarakkhita * List of Chinese Indonesians * Chinese Indonesian surname * Kongsi republic * List of kongsi * Lanfang Republic * Thai Chinese * Cambodian Chinese * Burmese Chinese * Laotian Chinese * Hoa, Vietnamese Chinese * Malaysian Chinese * Chinese Singaporeans, Singaporean Chinese * Ethnic Chinese in Brunei, Bruneian Chinese * Chinese Filipinos, Filipino Chinese *
Discrimination against Chinese Indonesians Discrimination against people of Chinese descent in Indonesia has been carried out since the time of the Dutch East India Company. Serious violence against Chinese people has occurred at irregular intervals since 1740, when the soldiers of the D ...
* Legislation on Chinese Indonesians *
1740 Batavia massacre The 1740 Batavia massacre ( nl, Chinezenmoord, lit=Murder of the Chinese; id, Geger Pacinan, lit=Chinatown tumult) was a massacre and pogrom in which European soldiers of the Dutch East India Company and Javanese collaborators killed ethnic ...
* 1918 Kudus riot * May 1998 riots of Indonesia * ''The Chinese in Indonesia'', a book by Pramoedya Ananta Toer * Indonesian Americans * Indonesian Australians * People's Republic of China – Indonesia relations * Indonesia–Taiwan relations * Peranakans


Notes


References


Bibliography


Tertiary sources

* * * * * * * * *


Secondary sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Primary sources

* *


Further reading

* Willmott, Donald Earl. ''The Chinese of Semarang: A Changing Minority in Indonesia'', Ithaca (Cornell University Press), 1960. * Evi Nurvidya Arifin, M. Sairi Hasbullah & Agus Pramono (2017),
Chinese Indonesians: how many, who and where?
', Asian Ethnicity, 18:3, 310–329.


External links


Chinese Indonesian Association
(', INTI)
Chinese Indonesian Social Association
(', PSMTI) *
Tradisi dan Budaya Tionghoa
{{Good article Ethnic groups in Indonesia Immigration to Indonesia Chinese diaspora by country, Indonesian Indonesian people of Chinese descent, Chinese diaspora in Indonesia Chinese Indonesian culture