Why did countries in Southeast Asia want independence after World War 2?
-Impact of the Japanese Occupation and increased nationalism
-The people had been inspired by the strength and determination of nationalist leaders and movements
-Colonised people were more daring to confront the colonial powers and demand independence as a result of lowered prestige of colonial powers afte rthe war
-Willingness by returning colonial powers (eg Promise made in Atlantic Charter) to prepare cuntries for eventual independence
Firstly, countries in S.E.A wanted independence because many people in S.E.A had experienced a stronger sense of nationalism as a result of the Japanese Occupation. In the closing months of WW2, the Japanese commanders promoted the independence movement in S.E.A as a means of getting support from the local people against the Allied powers. This fostered the spirit of nationalism further, as the local people began to think of their country's future without foreign master, a future where the local people would be able to forge their own identity and be masters of their own destiny.
In Malaya, Malay nationalism was encouraged as the Malays were given political positions during the Japanese Occupation and this made them more politically-conscious and more confident to rule themselves. Founded in 1946, the UMNO was the first mass nationalist party for Malaya which called for the unity of all Malays to defend Malay rights and interests against the Malayan Union proposals to grant equal rights to immigrant races. The strength of the Malay opposition resulted in the British introducing a new constitution (Federation of Malaya) to replace the Malayan Union. In this new constitution, the Sultan's powers and the authority of the state councils were restored, and the special positions of the Malays were protected.
Similarly, in Indonesia, the Japanese Occupation made direct and positive contributions to the development of Indonesian nationalism. The Japanese not only freed nationalist leaders such as Hatta and Sukarno from jail and put these Indonesian nationalists as administrators of their country, thus giving them experience to run their own country, but also allowed these nationalist leaders to campaign their causes. The nationalists were allowed to use Japanese facilities to stir up the spirit of nationalism. The Japanese also encouraged the formation of military units such as PETA to train Indonesians to fight for their homeland. Thus, these Japanese actions enabled Indonesian nationalism to develop mass support. In fact, Japan went so far as to set up a preparatory body in 1945 to spur Indonesia to become an independent nation. Thus the Japanese Occupation inspired nationalist groups to achieve independence in S.E.A.
One reason why countries in Southeast Asia wanted independence after World War 2 was because the people of individual countries had been inspired by the nationalist leaders and movements.
In Malaya, Tengku Abdul Rahman gained British confidence to grant Malaya independence as he understood the importance of forming an Alliance between UMNO, MCA and MIC. Thus, Tengku's strategy was firstly to show that the three races can work together as the Alliance Party members in local and Federal councils. During the period of Emergency, the Malays, Chinese and Indians worked together with the British to counter communist insurgents. Tengku's actions showed the British that they were capable anti-communist leaders who could challenge the communists, protect economic investment and command popular support. Ultimately, when Tengku Abdul Rahman led the "Merdeka Mission" to London in 1956, the British agreed to give independence to Malaya by 31 August 1957. Thus it was the leadership of Tengku Abdul Rahman which helped Malaya to gain its independence.
Similarly, the charismatic and influential Indonesian nationalist leader, Sukarno showed his determination to gain independence as early as 1929, and despite suffering many arrests in 1929, 1934 and 1947, his perseverence provided the leadership to pressure the Dutch to eventually grant Indonesia independence in 1949.
Another reason why countries in Southeast Asia wanted independence after World War 2 was because they were more daring to confront the colonial forces, especially after the myth of European superiority has been shattered. Before WW2, the colonial forces used their superior forces to defeat nationalism revolts. Similarly in Malaya, the British armed forces were a force to be reckoned with in Malaya. Fundamentally after WW2, the nationalists in Southeast Asia were inspired by the British defeat at the hands of the Japanese. The people of Southeast Asia were thus more open to nationalist ideas and ready to rise up in rebellion against their colonial masters because the Japanese had shattered the myth that Europeans were superior and unbeatable.
Another reason why countries in Southeast Asia wanted independence after WW2 was because, the Allies had introduced the Atlantic Charter in 1941 which proclaimed the right of all peoples to choose their own form of government (self-determination) and renounced the use of force in international relations. As such, new political demands from the nationalists in Indonesia and Malaya to be free from colonial rule would inevitably arise. For example, with the establishment of the Independent Act in accordance with the Atlantic Charter, the British were pressured to give up her colonies. Hence, the British could not possibly maintain the pre-war political structure in Malaya and had to inevitably meet the demands according to the Atlantic Charter as well as to take steps to prepare the local people for independence. Thus the fact that the colonial masters had made promises of eventual independence made many Southeast Asian nationalist leaders press for independence from colonial rule.
How different were the responses of Southeast Asian countries to colonial powers' attempts to reassert their control after WW2?
Similar- Nationalists determined to achieve independence eventually
Different- Nationalists in Malaya used peaceful means, while the nationalists in Indonesia staged an armed struggle
The response of Southeast Asian countries to colonial powers' attempts to reassert to their control after WW2 were similar to a certain extent as the Nationalists were determined not to allow the Europeans to gain back total control of their countries.
In Malaya, the armed communist rebellion in 1948 had caused problems to the British authorities. The British authorities adopted stringent measures to curb the communist threat, which included declaring a state of Emergency from 1948 to 1960 and imposing curfews and restricting people's freedom of movement. In this critical situation, the political leaders from the Alliance showed that their political ambition was different from the communists; that they were anti-communist, and willing to co-operate with the British and thus deserved the gradual transfer of power in their road to independence.
In Indonesia, the nationalists were determined to achieve independence at all costs. The nationalists first chose diplomacy over violence but when that did not work, they resorted to violence to achieve independence. Hence, it was clear that the nationalists in S.E.A were similarly determined to end colonial rule and take steps to achieve independence when the colonial powers attempted to reassert their control after 1945.
However, the responses were different. In Malaya, the local political leaders preferred negotiation and gradual transfer of power through elections and diplomacy, while the Indonesian leaders waged an armed struggle against the Dutch authorities.
In Indonesia, when it became clear that the Japanese control was collapsing, Sukarno declared independence. When the Duthc refused to recognise the new republic and offered Indonesia membership in the proposed KINGDOM OF THE NETHERLANDS, both Sukarno and Sjahrir turned it down. Bloody fighting ensued between the Indonesian republican forces and the Dutch forces. Similarly the Linggajati Agreement in 1947 was rejected by the Indonesian republican government, because the Dutch proposal of a United States of Indonesia whereby the islands of Java, Madura and Sumatra would be organiesd as one state controlled by the Republic of Indonesia and the remaining outer islands of Borneo and Sulawesi would be organised into 15 states under Dutch control meant that republican Indonesia would be heavily outnumbered by the Dutch-controlled territories. The failure of the Linggajati Agreement led to continued violence. The Dutch in the meantime had extended their control beyond their control of the urban area of Java and Sumatra. In 1948, the UN intervened and set up a truce under the Renville Agreement. Both sides accused each other of violations of the Agreement. Negotiations broke down completely. The Dutch seized the remainder of the republican territories and arrested leaders of the republican government. Subsequently, in 1949, after Sukarno and Hatta were released from prison at the request of the UN, the round table conference was held in Hague and it acted as a stepping stone which eventually led to full independence for Indonesia in 1949.
However, the response of the people in Malaya to the British return to Malaya after WW2 was different to a certain extent. When the British returned to Malaya, they were prepared to take steps to transfer power to local hands. One of the first steps was to combine the separate administrative units into a single union called the Malayan Union in order to enhance administrative efficiency and create a stronger defence that could withstand external aggression after British withdrawal. Protests against the Malayan Union were not agains the British reasserting their control but the granting of equal rights to immigrant races. Led by UMNO, the Malays staged a peaceful non-cooperation protest against the Malayan Union, some suspecting that the taking away of Malay special rights was a British attempt to reassert their authority and undermine Malay leadership. The strong nationwide Malay protest led to the British replacing the Malayan Union with a Federation of Malaya scheme which tightened citizenship qualifications for Chinese and Indians and re-established Malay rights. Other than this, British return to Malaya was welcomed because the British took active steps to give local leaders experience in running administrative matters such as those concerning health, agriculture and home affairs.
The only other group that were discontented with the British return were the communists who wanted to overthrow British rule and set up a communist republic in Malaya. From 1948-1960, the communists fought an armed struggle against British forces. When the British made active steps to grant Malayan leaders more decision-making powers in the Legislative Assembly, in a self-governing country in 1955 and an independent nation by 1957, the communists were indeed fighting a lost cause and thus ended their struggle against British forces.
Overall, the Malays and the immigrant races welcomed the British return to Malaya after WW2 because of their attempts to transfer power to local leaders. With the exception of the communists, the people's co-operation with the gradual steps to independence meant that Malaya took a more peaceful road to independence, compared to the armed struggles in Indonesia.
Conclusion
Although there were large differences in the reactions of the nationalists for instance in Indonesia and in Malaya, they had one thing in common. Basically they all wanted to prevent the colonial powers from reasserting their power and instead to strive to achieve independence. Essentially, there was really only a difference over the means rather than the ends because they all had similar goals but the methods they used to achieve these goals varied. For instance, they differed over how to achieve their goal, whether a violent independence struggle was the only way or whether independence could be achieved peacefully.
posted by toyotacorolla @ 10:21 PM
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