Rabu, 24 September 2008

The Asian-African Conference

Challenges to the Unitary State

The philosophy behind the Unitary State was that a pluralistic country like Indonesia could only be independent and strong if it was firmly united and integrated. This was obviously the answer to the Dutch colonial practice of divide and rule. Hence, the national motto was "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika" as referred to earlier.

However, no sooner was the Unitary State re-established then it had to face numerous armed rebellions. The Darul Islam rebels under Kartosuwiryo terrorized the countryside of West Java in their move to establish an Islamic State. It took years to stamp them out. Then there was the terrorist APRA band of former Dutch army captain Turco Westerling, which claimed the lives of thousands of innocent people.

Outside Java, demobilized ex-colonial arm men who remained loyal to the Dutch crown, staged a revolt and proclaimed what they called "the Republic of South Maluku".

In South Sulawesi an ex-colonial army officer, Andi Aziz, also rebelled. In Kalimantan Ibnu Hadjar led another armed revolt. Sumatra could also account for a number of separatist movements. And, to complete the list, the Indonesian Communist Party again staged an abortive coup under the name of 30th September movement, when they kidnaped and killed six of the country's top army generals in the early hours of October 1, 1965.


The Asian-African Conference

President Soekarno had to his credit the holding of the Asian-African Conference in Bandung, West Java, from April 18 to 24, 1955. The initiative was taken by Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Myanmar and Ceylon (Sri Lanka). The conference was attended by delegates from 24 Asian and African countries. The purpose of the meeting was to promote closer and amiable cooperation in the economic, cultural and political fields. The resolution adopted became known as the "Dasa Sila", or "The Ten Principles," of Bandung. It strived for world peace, respect for one another's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and for non-interference in each other's internal affairs. The resolution also sought to uphold the human rights principles of the United Nations.

The Asian-African Conference became the embryo of the Non-Aligned Movement. The seeds that sprouted in Bandung took firm root six years later when 25 newly independent countries formally founded the Non-Aligned Movement at the Belgrade Summit of 1961. Since then the membership of the Movement has grown to its present strength of 112 member countries.


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