Indonesia and Mahatma Gandhi

[Prof. Dr. Yogendra Yadav]

Prof. Dr. Yogendra Yadav

Senior Gandhian Scholar, Professor, Editor and Linguist

Gandhi International Study and Research Institute, Jalgaon, Maharashtra, India

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Indonesia and Mahatma Gandhi

 

The first number of the English edition of the bulletin of the Organizing Committee of the International Juridical Conference has been on my file for the past three or four months. The bulletin is edited by a Board of Directors drawn from Austria, Czechoslovakia, Cuba, France, Germany, Holland, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland and Venezuela. The Organizing Secretary is Dr. Alfred Apfel of Berlin where the bulletin is issued. The editorial notice says that the bulletin is only a temporary publication. The opening article is headed the ‘Duty of Lawyers’ from which I take the following two interesting sections as being not irrelevant in the present times in India. 1 My hope is based on a detached view of the situation. Whilst in detention in the Aga Khan Palace I had leisure to read and think. What struck me was that whilst practice showed deterioration, the mind of man had very much progressed. Practice has not been able to keep pace with the mind. Man has begun to say, ‘This is wrong, that is wrong.’ Whereas previously he justified his conduct, he now no longer justifies his own or his neighbour’s. He wants to set right the wrong but does not know that his own practice fails him. The contradiction between his thought and conduct fetters him. His conduct is not governed by logic. Then, of course, there is my standing prediction in favour of non-violence that it will prevail whatever man may or may not do. That keeps my optimism alive. Extensive personal experience too confirms my belief that nonviolence is self-acting. It will have its way and overcome all obstacles irrespective of the shortcomings of the instruments. It makes no difference how we arrive at our conclusion, but it keeps us fresh and green. 2

Gandhiji told them that Indian sympathy they had already, as was shown by the resolution of the Working Committee on Indonesia and the Far East. As for the use of Indian troops against them, it was as much India’s and Britain’s shame as their misfortune. It could be ended only by India gaining her independence, which would be the forerunner of the emancipation of all the suppressed and exploited races of the earth. 3 The Working Committee has watched with admiration and sympathy the valiant struggle in defence of their newly won republic and independence which the people of Indonesia have been carrying on with steadfast courage and determination against British and Dutch forces. This Committee emphatically condemns the wanton invasion of Java and other parts of Indonesia in order to impose Dutch imperialist domination on their inhabitants against their unanimous demand for a Free State. Any support from any quarter to imperialist designs in Indonesia, Indo-China and elsewhere is resented throughout Asia as culpable violation of the professed aims of the United Nations and the undeniable right of Asian nationals. This will destroy the chance of international understanding and the very basis of any future world organization. The Committee regrets that the United States of America have by their passive attitude encouraged these imperialist aggressions. While expressing their heartfelt sympathy with the Indonesia and Indo-Chinese nationalists for the enormous loss and suffering inflicted upon them by the imperialist powers, this Committee are particularly distressed to find the units of the Indian army arrayed against the Indonesians and Indo-Chinese and view with deep indignation this mischievous misuse of the Indian forces by the British Government. This Committee notes with resentment that the Government of India has not granted necessary facilities to enable Jawaharlal Nehru to proceed to Java in response to Dr. Soekarno’s invitation to which the present intolerable state of humiliating helplessness is due. 4 

I can only speak in broad terms. If you have felt in your heart that you have taken office as custodians and representatives of the interests of the masses, everything that you do, your legislation, your executive orders, the instructions that you issue, will breathe concern for the villager. To protect his interests, you do not need the Viceroy’s sanction. Supposing you want to protect the hand-spinner and hand-weaver against the competition of mills and solve the problem of cloth shortage for the masses, you will put aside red tape and send for the mill-owners and tell them that, unless they want you to go out of office, they must make their production policy conform to the requirement of the masses, whose custodian and representative you are. You will tell them not to send mill cloth to certain areas, which are put under hand production or produce a certain range of yarns and textiles which comes within the handloom weaver’s domain. If you are in earnest, your word will go home and they will willingly give their co-operation as they did recently, when they provided the required textiles for export to Indonesia, in return for Indonesian surplus rice for the relief of the Indian famine. But there must be that inner conviction first; everything else will then be all right. 5 

Non-violence is the only thing which can counteract any kind of atom bomb. However, I feel that you have no knowledge of nonviolence. Let me ask you: suppose Russia, America and England combined together and attacked you, what kind of violence would you use against them and how? I feel that you could withstand it only if the whole of Asia helped you against it. Even then the European arms would be superior to yours. But Indonesia alone will be able to counteract all the three powers if you show courage, are prepared to die a brave death and adopt non-violence. Yes, it is true that everyone will be sacrificed. But no one will be able to subjugate you. The nonviolence which we practised was not that of the brave. It was passive resistance. If we could have practised non-violence of the brave there wouldn’t have been this fratricidal carnage which is taking place now. Spiritual courage is more important than physical courage. If, therefore, not only India but the whole of Asia practised non-violence of the brave, Asia would have a different status. Unluckily the wave of violence has spread all over India. I must confess that all the hopes I have pinned on India will be belied if we are not able to practise nonviolence of the brave. I hope at least that God will not make me a witness to it. 6

That, he said, would be a thoughtless act. It would be a sign perhaps of arrogance. The British were retiring, not the French and the Portuguese. He, undoubtedly, held the view that the Indians in these possessions were bound to merge in Independent India in good time. Only the Indians in those territories should not take the law in their own hands. They had constitutional means open to them and then there was their Chief Minister who had vindicated the freedom of Indonesia. Surely, he was not going to neglect his own kith and kin in the two possessions. If they had any doubt about the validity of his advice, they should act on Panditji’s advice. 7 Success is at your door although the situation does not look bright at present. India fought for 30 years without sympathy from outside. Mahatma Gandhi advised Indonesia to take every opportunity to establish closer relations with other Asian peoples. He was also reported to have told an Indonesian Women’s League delegation attending the All-India Women’s Conference in Madras: Don’t waver. Victory is in sight. 8 Many thanks for the kind message from the President. Please accept them for yourself too, for your own good wishes. I hope the Republic of Indonesia will flourish. 9

 

References:

 

1. 1.      Young India, 13-2-1930
2. 2.      Harijan, 7-4-1946
3. 3.      Harijan, 24-2-1946 
4. 4.      The Indian Annual Register, 1945, Vol. II, p. 101 
5. 5.      Harijan, 25-8-1946 
6. 6.      Bihar Pachhi Dilhi, p. 303 
7. 7.      Harijan, 24-8-1947
8. 8.      The Hindu, 29-12-1947 
9. 9.      Letter to Representative, January 21, 1948