KEMANUSIAAN Vol. 25, No. 2, (2018), 49–71 The Dutch Colonial Economic Policy: Coffee Exploitation in Tapanuli Residency, 1849–1928 *BUDI AGUSTONO1 JUNAIDI1,2 1Department of History, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, University of Sumatera Utara, Medan, Indonesia Current affiliation: 2Department of History, Faculty of Cultural Sciences, University of Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia *Corresponding author:
[email protected] Published online: 26 September 2018 To cite this article: Agustono, B. and Junaidi. 2018. The Dutch colonial economic policy: Coffee exploitation in Tapanuli residency, 1849–1928. KEMANUSIAAN the Asian Journal of Humanities 25(2): 49–71, https://doi.org/10.21315/kajh2018.25.2.3 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.21315/kajh2018.25.2.3 Abstract: The occupation of Tapanuli district was an objective of Dutch colonial settlement in the Indonesian archipelago. The expansion of the area was not only due to political factors but also due to vast economic ambition. This was evident from the trade monopoly of coffee from the beginning of Dutch occupation in the area. The colonial government’s desire for the economy was gratified by the implementation of coffee forced-farming in Tapanuli. The forced-farming system created huge profits for the treasury of the Dutch colonial government. The colonial exploitation was not confined to coffee forced-farming only but also extended to the local people, who were forcibly exploited for their labour as coolies to carry the coffee beans from remote storehouses to the port. The suffering of the local people worsened when Tapanuli district was categorised as a taxpayer district by the end of 19th century.