The Dutch colonial rule led to poverty and social disruption, and when in 1796 the British
reappeared, complete lack of local support forced the Dutch to give up their ruling power
(Riedel 1886). The early 1800s was a period of relative isolation for Maluku, and inter-island
contact was mostly via Buginese and Makassar traders from Sulawesi and Java (Fox 1996).
At this time, the Chinese also began to play a major role in local trade. However, in 1817 the
British were again defeated and the Dutch re-established their capital in Ambon.
The creation of an economic monopoly on clove production in Maluku entailed enforced
production quotas, the imposition of population relocations, and radical interventions into
existing patterns of the social and political structures. Villagers were forcibly relocated on the
coast and settled within newly created territorial units managed by individuals occupying
Dutch-created administrative roles, the bapak raja and kepala soa (Chauvel 1990 in Zerner 1994b).
There was serious local resistance led by Thomas Matualesi, better known as Pattimura, of
Saparua Island, in 1817, which ended in defeat for the local troops in 1823. Under subsequent
Dutch rule, Maluku children were schooled in the Dutch language and advances were made
in converting the local population to Protestantism. The Christians then came to be favored
by the Dutch, rising to occupy administrative positions in the government.
It was not until 1920 that “Sarekat Ambon”, the first indigenous political party, was formed
to advance the welfare of Ambonese people. Its leader, A.J. Patty, promoted independence.
Although he himself was subsequently exiled from Maluku, his work resulted in the opening
up of the government to include traditional leaders in the governmental council, the
“Ambonraad”. The Sarekat Ambon party was finally banned by the Dutch in 1939.
During World War II (1942-1945), Maluku was occupied by Japanese forces and ruled by a military
governor based in Ambon. People lived in fear of the brutality of Japanese occupying forces. All
political parties were banned and the function of traditional (adat) government discouraged. Maluku
was cut off from the outside world and the period is remembered as one of extreme hardship.
On 17 August 1945, the Republic of Indonesia proclaimed its independence from the Dutch
colonial rule. The Dutch, with a degree of local support, attempted to retain control over Maluku
but this uprising was finally defeated by Indonesia’s military, after a period of struggle that
lasted until 1952. In 1952, central Maluku was granted official status as an autonomous
administrative regency of Indonesia, and in 1957, Maluku gained the status of a province with
its own parliament. 1955-65 were years of political unrest at the national level that involved a
number of prominent Maluku politicians. It was also a period of rapid development and poverty
alleviation as the First Long-Term Development Plan, covering 25 years, was implemented.
The coup d’état of 1965 resulted in the takeover by Major General Suharto, whose leadership
remained intact until 1998. The Suharto era was characterized by tight control over politics and
a highly centralized form of administration, both of which had a powerful influence on the
political life and economic development in Maluku. The influence and power of the governing
party came to be felt at all levels, right down to the smallest villages (Dauvergne 1997).
Law No. 5, 1974 was passed defining the regional government structure. This was followed
by Law No. 5, 1979 which decreed that all village governments had to be redesigned to follow
a defined structure which did not accommodate traditional (adat) institutions such as sasi
and the kewang (traditional law enforcers). The indigenous people of Maluku were thrown
into confusion over whether to uphold their traditional laws and institutions, conform to the
new edict or seek some compromise between the two. That confusion, and the wide array of
responses at the village level, are still evident in Maluku today.
Regional and Village Level Context 29