A Short History of Bali Past and Its Future in the New Indonesian Democracy
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bali_final_b 1/10/03 1:38 PM Page 1 Two million tourists visit Bali every year. Many want to know about the island, its often turbulent past, and the forces that have shaped its universally appealing culture. This lively and informative concise history is for them, and for others interested in a unique but important A SHORT HISTORY OF province of Indonesia. A Short History of Bali covers the entire history of this intriguing and mysterious island, from before the Bronze Age to the presidency of Megawati Sukarnoputri and the tragedy of the Kuta bombings on 12 October 2002. It looks at the arrival of Indian culture, early European contact, the role of anthropologists and taste- makers of the 1930s in romanticising the island, and the complex legacies of Dutch control. It tells of the Japanese Occupation, the Indonesian Revolution, the massacres of 1965—66, and the onset of mass tourism under the Soeharto regime. Finally, it looks at recent economic progress, as well as its flip side— environmental problems generated by population growth and massive tourist BALI development. It also draws on Balinese opinion about the meaning of the island’s past and its future in the new Indonesian democracy. A Short History of Bali is an important insight into the complicated and surprising history of one of Asia’s most captivating societies. Robert Pringle Robert Pringle is an historian, journalist and diplomat with special interest in environmental issues, ethnic minorities and conflict resolution. He spent thirty years A SHORT HISTORY OF in the United States Foreign Service, nine of them in Indonesia, the Philippines and Papua New Guinea. He has a doctorate in Southeast Asian History from Cornell University and lives in Alexandria, Virginia, USA. Cover design: Tabitha King ALLEN&UNWIN Cover image: Getty Images BALIINDONESIA’S HINDU REALM HISTORY/TRAVEL www.allenandunwin.com Robert Pringle HALF_TITLE PAGESBali 26/9/03 2:39 PM Page 1 A SHORT HISTORY OF BALI Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page ii Short History of Asia Series Series Editor: Milton Osborne Milton Osborne has had an association with the Asian region for over 40 years as an academic, public servant and independent writer. He is the author of nine books on Asian topics, including Southeast Asia: An Introductory History, first published in 1979 and now in its eighth edition, and, most recently, The Mekong: Turbulent Past, Uncertain Future, published in 2000. HALF_TITLE PAGESBali 26/9/03 2:39 PM Page 2 A SHORT HISTORY OF BALI INDONESIA’S HINDU REALM Robert Pringle Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page iv Cover: Water Temple on Lake Bratan First published in 2004 by Allen & Unwin Copyright © Robert Pringle 2004 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. The Australian Copyright Act 1968 (the Act) allows a maximum of one chapter or 10 per cent of this book, whichever is the greater, to be photocopied by any educational institution for its educational purposes provided that the educational institution (or body that administers it) has given a remuneration notice to Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) under the Act. Allen & Unwin 83 Alexander Street Crows Nest NSW 2065 Australia Phone: (61 2) 8425 0100 Fax: (61 2) 9906 2218 Email: [email protected] Web: www.allenandunwin.com National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry: Pringle, Robert, 1936– . A short history of Bali, Indonesia’s Hindu realm. Bibliography. Includes index. ISBN 1 86508 863 3. 1. Bali (Indonesia) – History. 2. Bali (Indonesia) – Politics and government. 3. Bali (Indonesia) – Social life and customs. I. Title. 959.86 Set in 11/14 pt Goudy by Midland Typesetters, Maryborough, Victoria Printed by South Wind Production, Singapore 10987654321 Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page v For my granddaughters, Ni Wayan Zoe and Ni Made Penelope, to read before they visit Bali. Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page vii Contents Acknowledgments and a word on names, spelling and sources x Abbreviations xiii Introduction xv 1 A snug little amphitheatre: The Balinese setting 1 Born of fire and water 1 What is ‘Bali’? 6 Who is Balinese and who might not be? 9 Intricate and formal delights: The appeal of Balinese culture 12 Civic and professional organisation 19 Kinship-based organisation 22 Caste and Hinduism on Bali 24 2 Moonset at Pejeng: Glimpses of Balinese prehistory 28 Earliest arrivals: Did Java Man make it to Bali? 30 The Austronesian Revolution: Bronze, iron and the development of agriculture 31 The importance of early trade 37 Bali on the eve of Indianisation 39 3 From Indianisation to the Majapahit Empire (ninth to sixteenth centuries) 41 The summoning of the Brahmans 42 Old Bali 45 The Majapahit conquest 59 Gelgel and the Golden Age 63 Why Bali remained Hindu 70 4 The Balinese state to the eve of Dutch control (seventeenth to nineteenth centuries) 71 vii Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page viii A Short History of Bali 5 The Dutch arrive: From first contact to final conquest (1597–1908) 82 Slavery and merchant adventure 84 Napoleon, Raffles and Singapore put Bali on the map 89 Enter the convivial Dane 92 Conquest: The first stage 96 The finishing 103 The meaning of puputan 106 6 Pax and poverty Neerlandica (1908–1942) 109 Economic and social impact 115 Inventing tradition 120 7 The world discovers Bali (1902–1942) 126 The first tourists 127 The pivotal personality 132 Changing styles in painting... 133 . and other art forms 139 Tourism takes root 142 Ambrosia to the anthropologists 147 The curtain drops 153 8 Occupation, revolution and bloodbath (1942–1966) 157 Japanese occupation 158 The Indonesian Revolution on Bali 159 The Sukarno era 166 Prelude to cataclysm 172 The killings of 1965–66 175 9 Dictatorship, democracy and the evolution of tourism (1966–2002) 181 Tourism hits high gear 184 ‘Tourists for Bali—not Bali for tourists’ 188 The economic offspring of tourism 195 Demographic trends: Family planning 196 viii Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page ix Contents O Pioneers! Transmigration 198 Balinese agriculture transformed 200 10 Bali in the twenty-first century: New challenges, including terrorism 203 A whiff of paranoia 207 The Hindu schism 209 Religious tolerance on Bali 211 The arts: Still lively... 212 . but is it sustainable 213 ‘Bali makin jelek’ 217 The challenge of decentralisation 221 Conclusion 224 11 Some closing thoughts 227 Glossary 232 Notes 235 Selected further reading 245 Index 254 ix Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page x Acknowledgments and a word on names, spelling and sources Writing this book would have been impossible without the expertise of others. Many Bali specialists were generous in sharing their insights with me, and two of them deserve special mention. Chapter 4 is in the main a condensation of Henk Schulte Nordholt’s The Spell of Power. He both read this chapter in draft and offered much assistance on other chapters as well. Chapter 8 relies almost as heavily on Geoffrey Robin- son’s The Dark Side of Paradise, and again the author was extremely generous with his commentary. Any factual mistakes or divergences in interpretation in these two chapters or elsewhere are, of course, solely my responsibility. I owe another special debt of gratitude to Hildred Geertz, who offered invaluable advice on the entire draft. In Bali, his- torian I Nyoman Wijaya provided me with extensive research and production assistance over several months. Others who gave generously of their time and expertise include archaeologist I Wayan Ardika, whose views on prehistory substantially influenced my treatment of this subject. Anthropologist J. Stephen Lansing and Alit Artawiguna of the Bali agricultural extension service helped me understand the impact of the Green Revolution. Gloria Davis did the same for transmigration. Dewa N. Wirawan was a major source of insight into Bali’s family planning success, as was one of its pioneers, A.A.M. Djelantik. Andrew Toth, an ethnomusicologist who doubles as US Honorary Consul on Bali, assisted with music and many other subjects. Economist I Nyoman Erawan helped with the tourism sector, as did Jack Daniels of Bali Discovery Tours (who also produces the very informative Bali Update online newsletter) and I Nyoman x Short History of Bali 8/6/04 5:05 PM Page xi Acknowledgments and a word on names, spelling and sources Suamba of the provincial tourism office. Peter Stowell and Walter Sullivan shared their expertise on Walter Spies and Margaret Mead respectively and more generally helped me to understand Bali in the 1930s. Suteja Neka and I Made Parnatha of the Neka Art Museum, and Gusti Ayu Indrayana Karya of the Museum Puri Lukisan, as well as Tjokorda Putra Sukawati, all in Ubud, allowed me generous access to their respective collections and permission to reproduce certain items. Jos Pet and Tim Jessup of the Nature Conservancy and Ketut Sarjana Putra of the World Wide Fund for Nature explained the turtle project and other environmental issues. Barbara Harvey, Sean Foley, Merle Ricklefs and Debe Campbell read and commented on the draft in whole or in part. Others who helped along the way include A.A. Gde Putra Agung, Clifford Geertz, Latitudes editor Degung Santikarma, Leslie Dwyer, John MacDougall, Bill Liddle, Adrian Vickers, Helen Jessup, Greta Morris, Christopher Purdy, Yanti Spooner, Dan and Margaret Sullivan, Ketut Sudhana Astika, Surya Dharma, the editors of Joyo Indonesia News Service, the unfailingly helpful management of the Puri Kelapa Hotel in Sanur, and the miracle-working inter-library loan staff of the Alexandria, Virginia, Public Library, and I thank them all.