What this lesson teaches
I can judge how colonial rule changed politics, the economy and society in Southeast Asia after 1870, and who gained or lost.
Syllabus K330, Extension of European Control in Southeast Asia, Learning Outcomes. Evaluate the impact of European influence on Southeast Asia after 1870.
Make a guess
In 1918 the Volksraad, a council that included Indonesians, opened. Do you think it gave Indonesians control of the government?
- No, it could advise, but the Dutch kept real power.
- Yes, it was an elected parliament that ran the colony.
- No, because Indonesians were barred from sitting in it.
Show the answer
No, it could advise, but the Dutch kept real power.
Indonesians gained a place to voice ideas, but the colonial government still made the final decisions.
Towns, schools and new groups gave some Indonesians fresh ideas and contacts, but the Dutch kept political power.
Trading towns brought together European managers, local workers and migrants from across Asia. A plural society has different ethnic and cultural communities living in the same society. These communities did not have equal legal rights or economic chances. People from the same background also did not all do the same job.
In 1901, the Dutch announced the Ethical Policy. It claimed Dutch rule was responsible for improving welfare. Its aims included education and irrigation, which brings water to farmland. Schooling stayed limited. But some Indonesians got a Western-style education that opened doors to government jobs and wider contacts. Those skills and contacts also helped people discuss unfair treatment and organise for change.
In 1908, medical students founded Budi Utomo to promote education and culture, at first mainly in Java and Madura. It showed a new way to organise around shared aims. It was not yet a movement uniting everyone behind immediate independence.
The Volksraad, or People's Council, opened in 1918. A limited group of representatives could discuss public issues there, but the colonial government kept real power. More local participation did not mean Indonesians controlled the government. Separate the Ethical Policy's stated aims, what it actually provided and the powers people still lacked.
- Ethical Policy, 1901
- Dutch promise to improve welfare, schools and irrigation.
- Budi Utomo, 1908
- Group founded by medical students to promote education.
- Volksraad, 1918
- People's Council with limited powers.
Worked example: Education can have surprising effects
An Indonesian student trains for a colonial job and meets others worried about unfair treatment.
- The education helps them work for the colonial government.
- The same skills and contacts help people share grievances.
- So education can serve the system and also help people criticise it.
Watch out for this
The Volksraad gave Indonesians control of the government.
The Volksraad could discuss issues, but the Dutch colonial government kept real power.
Check your understanding
What was the Volksraad?
- A school for Indonesian officials set up under the Ethical Policy.
- An Indonesian government that replaced Dutch rule in Java and Sumatra from 1918.
- A council where some representatives could discuss issues while the Dutch kept power.
Show the answer
A council where some representatives could discuss issues while the Dutch kept power.
Yes. It allowed limited participation, not control.