Indonesia: Glory and Sorrow.

• Author: HOWELL, LLEWELLYN D.
• Position: History and social aspects

INDONESIA has already had its 15 minutes of 21st-century fame. That has come in the form of notoriety, rather than recognition of its rich diversity; in stories of beheadings and cannibalism, instead of technological advancement; and in expressions of racism and human savagery, in place of conciliation and faith. The world's fourth-largest country encompasses all of these facets, making it a gem that is half diamond, half coal.

In March, 2001, Dayaks, one of the groups of native people on the island of Kalimantan (Borneo), again erupted in violence directed at immigrants from the nearby island of Madura. The Madurese had been pushed to the less-populated island in a government effort to disperse its population from crowded Java and Madura. This "transmigration" policy has barely dented the demographic or economic problems of central Indonesia and has created, instead, hemorrhaging sores in the intricate quilt that comprises Indonesian society. In this latest eruption, Dayaks returned to a bloody history by cutting off the heads of Madurese and reportedly eating the hearts of some. In one incident, 118 Madurese were killed in a schoolyard after being pulled from tracks in which they had hoped to have a protected escape. More than 450 are known dead in this slaughter.

Indonesia's history is a rich one, replete with episodes of empire, artistic and architectural magnificence, cultural expansionism, fragmentation, war, Asian and European colonialism, revolution, and, ultimately in 1949, unification and independence. Prior to that date, Indonesia as a single political entity never existed. When the Europeans arrived in the 16th century, they found an archipelago consisting of more than 13,600 islands, 300 distinct ethnic groups, and 225 dialects. Rule was generated through numerous sultanates, monarchies, and chief-ruled tribal territories. The Dutch brought together these many diverse units and created the country now known as Indonesia.

Adding to the political fragmentation of the region were the multidimensional sources of religious thought and the origins of philosophies of governance. In a quasi-colonial manner, Indians had ruled or influenced many of the major political entities of the Indonesian archipelago prior to the arrival of Europeans. The Indians had brought with them Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam, which became layered in a mix that underlies the nature of modern Sunni Islam in Indonesia. In all of these religious manifestations...