Reactions to Persdelict

Chapter 5 Reactions to Persdelict

The 1919 novel Student Hidjo begins with an introduction that reads:

This story has already been published in the newspaper under my man- agement, the daily Sinar Hindia, in the year 1918. Essentially, this composition is the product of my pen when I was serv- ing a sentence due to a persdelict case, in the civil and military prison in Weltevreden, for the period of one year. Although I could not write for the newspaper while in prison, I could produce books like Sair Rempah- Rempah, Student Hidjo, Matahariah, etc. Hopefully this book can be of use to all its readers. - Marco Kartodikromo, Semarang, 26 March 19191

In those few lines, the author provides a representative picture of indigenous political activism in the second decade of the twentieth century in the Indies. The author, Marco Kartodikromo (1890–1932)—commonly referred to as Mas Marco—was a star journalist and well-known political activist. He was the editor-in-chief of Doenia Bergerak (World in Motion) and founder of the In- landsche Journalisten Bond (Union of Native Journalists) in Soerakarta. Here journalists played the role of movement (pergerakan) leaders without a well- defined organizational base.2 Mas Marco was known for his frequent organiza- tion of political rallies for Sarekat Islam, and for his rousing speeches. In the introduction of Student Hidjo, Marco remarks that he was imprisoned for a year because of persdelict, and yet he managed to produce books that continued to communicate his thoughts for his audience. In effect, the imprisonment provided him with the opportunity to gather his thoughts and ideas, which he otherwise might not have been able to do had he continued to focus on orga- nizing rallies all over Java. While he was physically imprisoned, his thoughts could roam freely, and he had ample of time to organize them into composi- tions. In other words, the persdelict case enabled him to reflect quietly in his prison cell and write those books. This is an interesting image that journalists projected and their audience received regarding the consequences of persdelict in the late 1910s. Prison was

1 Marco Kartodikromo, Student Hidjo (Semarang: Masman & Stroink, 1919). 2 Shiraishi, Age in Motion, p. 82.

Reactions to Persdelict 115 granted a special cultural meaning in “the age in motion” (zaman pergerakan) in Java. It was thought that prison was a space in which a ksatria (the knight in traditional Javanese shadow plays) practised asceticism and meditation to reflect and acquire wisdom or supernatural power.3 A ksatria lives and dies for moral purposes in order to realize the will of the gods and is seen as devoting himself to his mission. The novel Hikajat Kadiroen (The Story of Kadiroen), written by Marco’s contemporary political activist Semaoen, is prefaced with a similar context of mental distillation:

I hope this story, which I have written with tears and pain in prison, will please many, that is, all readers and the general public.4

Semaoen imagines that the ksatria image was shared not only by his readers but also by the Dutch authorities in the Indies. In the novel, a Dutch resident remarks on the rising social position of Kadiroen, the novel’s central character who was imprisoned for his political activity, saying:

[Y]ou have proven yourself to be a ksatria. You have shown that you are brave. … brave because you were willing to sacrifice your own interests for the benefit of many people in accordance with your conviction.5

This theme emerged as a cliché in the politics of movements in the colonial Dutch Indies. Ever since the Indies state added press offence and speech offence articles into the Penal Code, many journalists regardless of race were sentenced to jail or forced to pay fines, and they were well aware of the risks. The implementation of these punitive articles was most rigorous in the second and third decades of the twentieth century. In “the age in motion”, among other political tools, newspapers and political gatherings played important roles for movement leaders to articulate and disseminate their ideas.6 For the colonial authorities, the press offence and speech offence articles were use- ful in curtailing and suspending their activities for a period of time. It was a time when there was a reversal of progress towards a more liberal state, as the authorities tried to contain radical voices. Press freedom was supposed to be guaranteed by the law, but the reality showed recurring contradictions and

3 On sacred power in Javanese political culture, see Benedict Anderson, “The Idea of Power in Javanese Culture”, in Language and Power: Exploring Political Cultures in Indonesia, ed. Bene- dict Anderson (Ithaca, London: Cornell University Press, 1990), pp. 17–77. 4 Semaoen, Hikajat Kadiroen (Semarang: Kantoor P.K.I., 1920), p. 1. 5 Semaoen, Hikajat Kadiroen, p. 149. 6 Shiraishi, Age in Motion.