TOPIC: National Integration of Indonesia

1. What is the meaning of the motto “Bhineka Tunggal Ika” (Unity in Diversity)?

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2. What is the relationship between unity and diversity?

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3. Why is unity so important for the Indonesian people?

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4. How to maintain commitment to unity?

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Indonesia is a multiethnic and multi-religious society. According to the 2010

Population Census, there are more than 145 ethnic groups in Indonesia, of which the
largest is still the Javanese (40.05%), followed by the Sundanese (15.50%), Malay
(3.70%), Batak (3.58%), Madurese (3.03%), Betawi (2.87%), Minangkabau (2.73%),
Buginese (2.71%), Bantenese (1.96%), Banjarese (1.74%), Balinese (1.66%), Acehnese
(1.44%), Dayak (1.36%), Sasak (1.34%), and Chinese (1.20%) (Ananta et al. 2015: 78).
In terms of religion, the population can be divided into Muslims (87.51%), Christians
(Catholics/Protestants, 9.90%), Hindus (1.69%), Buddhists (0.72%), and Confucians
(0.05%) (Ananta et al. 2015: 257). Why did these multiethnic and multi-religious groups
come together to form a country called the Republic of Indonesia?
Modern Indonesia, a multiethnic nation-state, was a product of the Indonesian
nationalist movement, which emerged in the twentieth century under Dutch colonial rule.
The movement eventually united the country’s diverse ethnic groups (including ethnic
Chinese) and formed an Indonesian nation-state.

Dutch colonialism and the birth of modern Indonesia

Indonesian nationalists have argued that Indonesia today is the continuation of
the great Buddhist Srivijaya empire (7th to 13th centuries) and the Hindu-Buddhist
Majapahit empire (13th to 16th centuries). This is misleading. In fact, Indonesia is a
modern construct. The emergence of modern Indonesia is closely linked with Dutch
colonialism. It was Dutch colonial rule that united various ethnic groups in the Indonesian
archipelago under one colonial administration and one economic and legal system. It was
also under Dutch rule that the Dutch East Indies underwent major social change, including
the emergence of modern Indonesian elite, which produced a nationalist movement. This
nationalist movement emerged in the twentieth century and was led by the Western-
educated indigenous Indonesian leaders whose aim was to eliminate Dutch rule and
establish a modern Indonesian nation-state along the colonial boundaries, not the earlier
empire boundaries.
Indonesian leaders, represented by Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta, declared the
country’s independence on August 17, 1945, but the actual transfer of power from the
Dutch to the Indonesians took place only in December 1949. The inclusion of West Irian
(now Papua) into the Indonesian territory took place only in May 1963. Nevertheless, the
nationalist movement, which can be seen as part of the nation-building process, had
started prior to World War II.

Early ethnic conflicts: challenge to the Indonesian nation-state

Indonesian nationalists proclaimed Indonesia’s independence in 1945. The event
was followed by the Indonesia-Dutch armed conflict up to 1949 when the Dutch eventually
agreed to transfer political power to the Indonesians. The form of the Indonesian state
was at first federal, which would cater to different regional and ethnic interests. However,
a few ethnic groups rebelled against the central government and sought to establish an
independent state. The most serious incident was in South Maluku (the Moluccas), the
homeland of the Christian Ambonese (Feith 1962: 55–71). In April 1950, Soumokil, the
former justice minister of the Dutch-created “East Indonesia” state, with the support of
the regional executive council of the area, proclaimed the Republic of the South Moluccas
(Republik Maluku Selatan or RMS). The second rebellion took place in Aceh, a strongly
Islamic area (Sjamsuddin 1985). The Acehnese saw the Indonesian republic as a
Javanese- and Minangkabau-dominated state. The third rebellion involved the Irian Jaya
Independence Movement and was known as the Free Papua Movement (Osborne 1985).
Unlike the two earlier separatist movements, the Free Papua Movement is recent and
smaller in scale.

National integration and the Pancasila ideology

National integration comes from two words, "integration" and "national".

Integration comes from the English language, integrating, meaning combining, uniting.
In the Big Indonesian Dictionary, integration means mixing to become a unified whole
and intact. The word national comes from English, which means nation.
The measures of national integration adopted by the Indonesian government since
independence include the promotion of a national language, national education, national
symbols, national institutions, internal transmigration, and the national ideology or
Pancasila.
The most obvious measure was the promotion of an Indonesian national language
and education, and this was among the most successful. As Indonesian national schools
are required to use Bahasa Indonesia as the medium of instruction, Indonesians of
different ethnic groups are “nationalized” by learning the Indonesian language. The 2010
population census shows that 92.08% of Indonesians are able to speak Bahasa Indonesia
(Ananta et.al. 2015: 276). However, those who use Indonesian as a daily home language
only constitute 19.95%. The majority of Indonesians continue to speak their ethnic
language at home, with the exception of three ethnic groups: Betawi, Chinese, and Batak
(Ananta et al. 2015: 282).
Indonesian national symbols, such as the national flag, national anthem (Indonesia
Raya), and national emblem (the Garuda with its motto: Bhinneka Tunggal Ika) are
generally accepted by the Indonesian population of various ethnic groups. The presence
of national institutions, such as the national armed forces instead of the ethnic armed
forces, and national political parties instead of ethnic parties (with the exception of Aceh)
indicates the sense of national belonging in the country. Internal transmigration has not
been very successful as it often created ethnic enclaves and ethnic conflicts.
Last but not least is the national ideology Pancasila – the “five principles” – which
was first formulated by Sukarno during the preparation of Indonesia’s independence in
1945. The first principle, “Belief in One Almighty God,” was aimed at embracing all
religious Indonesians. However, it also denies a special position for Islam, reflecting a
secular vision of an Indonesian state and culture. The last four principles – Humanism,
Indonesian Unity, Democracy, and Social Justice – are ideas that are supposed to be
shared by all ethnic groups.
The state ideology was already a required school subject during the Guided
Democracy period (1959–65), but during Soeharto’s New Order (1966–1998), the
teaching of Pancasila in school was intensified. Between 1978 and 1990, the government
established an institute to instill the Pancasila ideology, making it a requirement for all
civil servants to take the course and pass the examination. In the view of the Soeharto
government, Pancasila meant religious pluralism. Under the umbrella of Pancasila,
religious freedom was guaranteed. However, it required Muslim organizations to accept
Pancasila as their ideological foundation as well. This was opposed by many Islamists who
felt that Pancasila should be subordinate to Islam. The Pancasila ideology attempts to
separate Islam as a religion from Islam as a political force. While the government tolerated
and even encouraged Islam as a religion (as evidenced in its sponsorship in building
mosques and assisting Islamic boarding schools), it suppressed political Islam before
1990.
It is worth noting that Islamists’ disagreement with “religious pluralism” is evidence of
their opposition to the proposal of Pancasila as the Indonesian ideology during both the
Sukarno and Soeharto eras. When Sukarno was in power, Islamic parties (both Nahdatul
Ulama and Masyumi) opposed Pancasila; this resulted in the dissolution of the Constituent
Assembly in 1959.
During the New Order period, when Pancasila became the sole ideology, there was
both peaceful and violent opposition. The Tanjung Priok affair in 1984 and the subsequent
bombings were closely related to the Pancasila issue. However, unlike the Sukarno era,
Indonesia under Soeharto succeeded in making Pancasila the predominant ideology. Even
the official Islamic party, the Partai Persatuan Pembangunan (PPP), was required to drop
Islam as its party ideological foundation and profess Pancasila.
The strong defendant of the Pancasila ideology has been the Indonesian military, which
is dominated by moderate Muslims and non-Muslims. The military as an institution also
serves as a means to integrate Indonesian society.
Soeharto ruled the country for 32 years but was eventually forced to step down in
May 1998, following the economic crisis and massive student demonstrations. His vice
president B. J. Habibie succeeded him and was forced to introduce reform. The post-
Soeharto era is therefore known as the “Reform Era” (Era Reformasi). After the fall of
Soeharto, Pancasila no longer had a monopoly of the state ideology. Political parties based
on Islam, not Pancasila, emerged. In the 1999 elections, for instance, more than 20 out
of 48 parties that participated in the general elections were Islamic Parties; in the 2004
general election, five out of 24 parties were Islamic Parties. In the 2009 general election,
five out of 38 parties were Islamic parties, and in 2014, also five out of 12 political parties
were Islamic parties (Suryadinata 2014).
Political Islam became respectable and its development is often at the expense of
the Pancasila ideology (Suryadinata 1986: 48–9). Nevertheless, Pancasila-based parties
are still the largest winners in every general election. Golkar and PDI-P (Partai Demokrasi-
Perjuangan) are still based on Pancasila; even some Muslim organization-linked parties
have also used Pancasila as the ideology of their parties: the PKB (Partai Kebangkitan
Bangsa, linked to NU) and PAN (Partai Amanat Nasional, linked to Muhammadiyah) are
two examples. Many have realized that if Pancasila is replaced by Islam, the young
Indonesian nation is likely to break up.
If Pancasila was the only ideology used to unite the country in Indonesia before
the fall of Soeharto, since his departure, the Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat (Supreme
Consultative Council, MPR) has been eager to promote three other ideological pillars: the
UUD 1945 (1945 Constitution), the concept of the Indonesian Unitary State (NKRI or
Negara Kesatuan Republik Indonesia), and the principle Unity in Diversity (Bhineka
Tunggal Ika). The PDI-P, the political party led by Sukarno’s daughter Megawati
Sukarnoputri, would like to socialize these ideological pillars, but some Islamic parties
have disagreed ( Sinar Harapan 2013).

Conclusion
Modern Indonesia was a product of the Indonesian nationalist movement, which emerged
in the twentieth century under Dutch colonial rule. The movement eventually united the
country’s diverse ethnic groups and created the Indonesian nation-state. There were a
few ethnic separatist movements, which were quelled by the central government with the
exception of that in East Timor, which became an independent state in 2002, but this was
a special case. The only remaining ethnic separatist movement of some scale is that in
Papua, but it remains weak.
Although the secular ideology as reflected in Pancasila remains dominant, various Islamist
ideologies have at times challenged the national ideology. This can be seen in various
political events before and after the fall of Soeharto. This may affect the continuing
process of nation-building in Indonesia.

Discuss:

1. Why in a multicultural country, like Indonesia, the concept of integration the nation
becomes the main prerequisite for the creation of unity and integrity nation. Explain
your opinion!

2. In essence, national integration is a process of unification of various kind cultural and

social groups into one regional unit, in order to form a national identity. Based on that
mentioned 3 (three) conditions for the success of a national integration for the
Indonesian people!

3. In essence, in the context of forming national integration, usually rely on the unity and
integrity of a ethnically diverse society different cultural characteristics. Based on that
mentioned differences in the supporting factors and obstacle factors for achieving
national integration!