Economic Restructure PORTRAYAL OF INEQUALITY

CHAPTER III PORTRAYAL OF INEQUALITY

IN THE LASKAR PELANGI QUARTET This chapter seeks to find the answer to the first research question, namely how does the main character in The Laskar Pelangi Quartet portray inequality in relation to modern colonialism practice? It refers to the definition of modern colonialism from Loomba who states that modern colonialism is not only about occupying countries’ region but also restructuring the economies of the colonized and takes them into a complex relationship within themselves. 60 This study uses Loomba and Sutrisno’s concept of modern colonialism. In the light of these theoretical concepts, the inequality that is produced by modern colonialism and the influence of class system to the natives’ attitude will be revealed from the quartet. Therefore, to ease the discussion this chapter will be divided into two sub chapters: first, economic restructure, which examines how modern colonialism restructures the economies of the colonized that produces inequality; second, constructing the attitude of the natives, i.e. scrutinizing how the natives are depicted in the quartet confront with inequality.

A. Economic Restructure

Before the Dutch discovered tin and built the tin mining company, mostly Belitung people were fishermen and worked in plantation. They also delivered the iron products to Java, such as knives and hatchets. 61 The occupation of the Dutch with the intention to exploit the tin was to support the growth her capitalism and 60 See Loomba, p. 9. 61 Mary F. Somers Heidhues, ‘Company Island: A Note on the History of Belitung’, in Indonesia, Vol. 51 Apr., 1991, p.2 http:www.jstor.org Accessed: 28102011 , 07:38 industry. Thus, restructuring the economy of the colonized says Loomba, is what modern colonialism does to dominate and control them. 62 In relation to European colonialism, its establishment is also intended to support the growth of European capitalism and industry . Economic imbalance is the consequence of the domination done by the modern colonialism practice. On the contrary, for the colonized subject, economic imbalance always produces inequality. It is admitted by Ashcroft et al: “…the kinds of inequity, and injustice, exclusion and oppression simply explicable in terms of class.” 63 The portrayal of inequality which is represented in The Laskar Pelangi Quartet is based on term of class. It aims to strengthen the poor condition of the native colonized people. Ikal, the main character, experiences such inequality. He portrays the inequality in Belitung society by contrasting the life of the highest and the lowest class. The existence of the tin mining company that had been built since the colonial era has become the colonizer’s tool to exploit Belitung. The company does not only exploit the tin as the natural resource and the treasure of Belitung, but also controls the economy of the colonized, the natives Belitung people. The company makes Belitung into a corporate village and creates imbalance condition that separates people into different classes. Ikal said that discrimination which has done by the company people as “The treatment differed based on caste-like groups” TRT: 32. The tin mining company previously was called the Billiton Maatschappij under the Dutch colonization. Later, when it was taken over by the Indonesian 62 Ibid. 63 Ashcroft et al, p.38 government, the name becomes PN Timah. PN is an abbreviation for Perusahaan Negeri or state-owned company, whereas timah is tin. From the beginning, the target of Dutch occupation in Belitung has been the tin exploitation. As Heidhues 1991 states: Whereas Bangka’s production has always been a state enterprise, the Billiton Maatschappij, or Mij as it was first known, Billiton is the Dutch pronunciation for Belitung, a single company, and its successors controlled the mines and dominated the history of Belitung for the century from its opening in 1850 until 1958, when Indonesia nationalized Netherlands’ properties and dissolved the tin company. 64 Based on the statement above, the Billiton Maatschappij was a private enterprise. It was different from the company in Bangka which was a state enterprise. The investment was not only from the Netherland government but also from private investors. The intention of European colonialism, namely using many kinds of techniques and patterns to invade others, is to produce the economic imbalance. The economic imbalance becomes the essential point to support European capitalism and industry. Thus, the tin mining company becomes the Dutch’s tool to support their industry. At the same time it produces economic imbalance between the company people and the natives. Then, the company people become the one who gain profit. Therefore, the existence of the tin mining company becomes the proof of modern colonialism practice in Belitung. Furthermore, opened in 1850, the tin mining company has become part of the island and the people for over a hundred years. The Billiton Maatschappij was the company that changed the ethnic composition in Belitung, because of its need of labourers. The company brought the Chinese people to migrate to Belitung and 64 Heidhues, p.1 became labourer. The management of the company was also handed over continuously from the clutch of the Dutch to the Indonesian government. However, not only the assets but also the mentality of the Dutch is adopted: The Indonesian government took over PN from the colonial Dutch. And not only were the assets seized, but also the feudalistic mentality. Even after Indonesia gained its freedom, PN’s treatment of its native employees remained very discriminatory. The treatment differed based on caste-like groups. The highest caste was occupied by PN executives. They usually were referred to as Staff. The lowest caste was comprised of none other than our parents, who worked for PN as pipe carriers, hard laborers sifting tin or daily paid laborers. TRT: 32 Then, feudalistic mentality, that is mentioned, refers to Belitung as a corporate village, which produces classes to differentiate people. The highest class is PN executives, and the lowest class is the labourers or coolies, who are the natives. Thus, the term colonizer in this discussion refers to the company as the colonial extension, whereas the colonized is the natives or Belitung people. They are at the lowest position in the company, and the poorest in the island. How the main character differentiates the society is influenced by the existence of the company. As he states: Because Belitong had already become a corporate village, PN slowly assumed the form of a dominant hegemonic ruler and, fitting with the feudalistic design, the caste of a PN worker automatically bled over into non-working hours. TRT: 32 The company makes Belitung into a corporate village which supports the born of feudalistic design through class system. Ikal takes the tin mining company as the actor of economic control in Belitung. He sees that the company only wants to exploit the tin and neglects the natives. Although the colonial era is over, the natives are still being occupied by the company people who do the same way as the previous colonizer. Previously, to keep the company’s production, the Dutch brought the Chinese, mostly as mine workers. As for the natives they were chosen only in auxiliary tasks, such as: prospectors, forest workers or policemen. 65 The Dutch began replacing the Chinese with the natives, after the First World War because of the economic depression. 66 It made the crisis in tin prices that most the Chinese left Belitung. When Belitung has obtained her independence, the Indonesian government handles the company. However, they take Javanese as the staffs and executives of the company. The Belitung-Malays as the natives have the same position as the helpers before and after the independent era. They were excluded by the Dutch on the exploitation of tin that is buried in their land. The Dutch preferred to use Chinese workers than the natives. Then, after Indonesia got her independence, the natives are still excluded by taking Javanese, and they remain inert at the lowest position, coolies. It indicates how modern colonialism restructures the economy of the colonized. By building the tin company, the economies of the colonized is being restructured. The Belitungese which was previously fishermen and worked in plantation began to work in industry sector as a coolie at the company. Economically, based on Ikal’s portrayal, different range of income level between the company staffs and the Belitungese as a coolie support the emerged of economic imbalance through the class system. As Loomba emphasizes that the essential point in European colonialism is the economic imbalance which is important for the growth of European capitalism and industry. 67 However, the effect of the economic restructuring by the Dutch in Belitung is not over after they 65 Heidhues, p.5 66 Heidhues, pp.11-13 67 See Loomba, p. 9 left. The Dutch has left a legacy of capitalism and industry in Belitung. Therefore, feudalistic mentality is part and parcel of the consequences. Moreover, after being neglected by the Dutch, the natives then have to compete with the migrants who come to Belitung as the company executives and staffs. With the above background in mind, it is interesting to see how the novels depict class structure in Belitung as something natural. I would argue that exploitation of the local people and nature is presented as something common. The discussion that follows will show how uncritical the novels are through the portrayal of class system in Belitung. The class system is based on kinds of occupation and income level to conclude who belongs to the highest class as the haves and the lowest class as the have-nots. Economic imbalance emerges between the natives, the company people and also the Chinese. The natives have lived side by side with the Chinese for more than a hundred years and they become part of Belitung society. However, the company people are the ones who dominate the economic condition in Belitung: The economic strength of Belitong Island was dominated by the Staff living in the Estate. … There was no middle class, or maybe there was—the public servants who engaged in small-scale corruption, or the law officers who took in extra money by intimidating the businessmen. … The lowest class was occupied by our parents, the PN coolies. PN paid them 30,000 rupiah per month. TRT: 43 From that dialogue, the highest class is the staffs of PN Timah, the middle class is the public servants and law officers, and the lowest class is the PN coolies whom Ikal’s family belongs to. Ikal accentuates the lowest class: “…was occupied by our parents.” Therefore, he classifies his parents on the lowest class because his father’s income as a coolie is 30,000 rupiahs per month. That fact convinces him that he, as the son of PN Timah coolie, is a poor child. Nevertheless, it should be noted that there is different classification shown in the Indonesian version, Laskar Pelangi 2006: The economic strength in Belitung was lead by PN Staffs and private brokers who work on the concession of tin exploitation. They include in the higher class on the slightest stratification layer. There was no middle class, or maybe there was, the sub-district heads, the public official heads and staffs who able to corrupt in a low level, and law officers who got debts because of threatening the brokers. The rest was on the lowest strata. They are a lot in number and the difference was conspicuous to the higher strata. They are the village administrators, honey and nira seekers, organ musicians, Sawang ethnic, Chinese who work in plantation, Malays who live in coastal area, honorary employees, teachers and headmasters of state and village school, exclude teachers and headmaster of PN School. 68 [My translation] The dialogue above describes that the first class is the PN Timah’s staffs and cukong swasta private broker who work on the concession process of the tin. The middle class are the same as the English version above, the public servants and law officers. The lower class, are not only coolies, but they are a lot in numbers and their professions are varied. Teachers and headmaster of PN School are not included in this class because they are parts of the company people. From the Indonesian version, poor family is not only coolie but there are other types of works that are economically equal with coolies. Therefore, in the English version, the main character emphasizes that the poorest is only PN coolies. Conversely, in the Indonesian version, there are many parents who live in poverty from other occupations, not only PN coolies. As a 68 Kekuatan ekonomi Belitong dipimpin oleh orang staf PN dan para cukong swasta yang mengerjakan setiap konsesi eksploitasi timah. Mereka menempati strata tertinggi dalam lapisan yang sangat tipis. Kelas menengah tak ada, oh atau mungkin juga ada, yaitu para camat, para kepala dinas dan pejabat-pejabat publik yang korupsi kecil-kecilan, dan aparat penegak hukum yang mendapat utang dari menggertaki cukong-cukong. Sisanya berada di lapisan terendah, jumlahnya banyak dan perbedaannya amat mencolok dibanding kelas diatasnya. Mereka adalah para pegawai kantor desa, karyawan rendahan PN, pencari madu dan nira, para pemain organ tunggal, semua orang Sawang, semua orang Tionghoa kebun, semua orang Melayu yang hidup di pesisir, para tenaga honorer Pemda, dan semua guru dan kepala sekolah—baik sekolah negeri maupun sekolah kampung—kecuali guru dan kepala sekolah PN. Andrea Hirata, Laskar Pelangi Yogyakarta: Bentang Pustaka, 2006 p.55; All subsequent reference to this work, abbreviated LP, will be used in this thesis with pagination only. result, poverty in the Indonesian version is portrayed as a common matter because there are many other professions with low salary. More dramatic effect is thus shown in the English version whereby poverty is only experienced by the PN coolies that makes gap between PN staffs and PN coolies is becoming more obvious. The portrayal of poverty in Indonesian version shows that it is not a vital problem but the English version takes it as a critical problem to strengthen the poor condition of PN coolies as the profession of Ikal’s father. As for the Chinese, previously they become a coolie at the company in the colonial era. Heidhues gives description about the Belitung-Chinese at that era: […] in the 1920 census, almost all ethnic Chinese gave Chinese as their daily language; the role of Malay was negligible. […] Most of Belitung’s Chinese were immigrants and transients, recently arrived and living in near-isolation from the local population in mining areas. […] Intermarriage with native women was not common. 69 Therefore, the Chinese come to Belitung as a migrant and only to work at the company. They use their own languge to communicate although they live in Belitung with Malay as the local language. They also live separately from the local people. After the independence era, the Chinese is able to survive with their own techniques on tin mining. The Dutch’s policy to bring the Chinese influences the composition of various ethnic groups in Belitung who then becoming part of the island: The Chinese-Malays, as they sometimes are called, have lived on the island for a long time. They were first brought to Belitong by the Dutch to be tin laborers. Most of them were Khek from Hakka, Hokian from Fukien, Thongsans, Ho Phos, Shan Tungs, and ThioCius. That tough ethnic community developed their own techniques for manually mining tin. TRT: 41 69 Heidhues, p.12 Economically, the life of the Chinese is better than the natives. Aside of that, they do not depend on the company for mining activity, they also penetrate the local trade, as Ikal explains: Amid the harmony of our community, the Chinese were the efficient traders. Those who actually produced the product hailed from places unknown to us— we only knew them through the made in tags on the back of pants. The Malays were the consumers and the poorer they grew, the more consumptive they became. TRT: 165 They provide the natives’ needs by opening shops and supporting the native’s consumptive habit. Thus, he sees the Chinese as the shopkeepers who control the economy of the Belitungese through the local trade. The Belitungese is only able to buy and spend their money. How he describes a Chinese shopkeeper is represented when he sees his cousin meets Mrs. Deborah Wong: “He came a close to A Siong’s wife. She was plaiting her little daughter’s hair, Mei Mei. The little girl reminded anyone of tofu. The mother and her daughter were plump but pretty” 70 [My translation]. Then, for her mother in-law, Ikal describes her as: “Her mother in-law who almost one hundred years old […] She never smile. Her clothes, skin, hair, eyebrows, gums without any teeth, and also her cat, all were grey. Mournful was the impression of her” 71 [My translation]. From the description, tofu represents the skin colour of the Chinese which is different from the Belitungese. It shows that Ikal othering the Chinese who has lived in Belitung side by side with the Belitungese. Then, the word grey represents the Chinese as migrant but can survive for hundred years in Belitung which is the Belitung-Malays homeland, with their own character that is described as mournful. 70 Lalu ia menghampiri istri A Siong. Nyonya ini sedang mengepang rambut putrinya, Mei Mei. Siapa pun yang melihat gadis kecil ini akan segera teringat pada tofu. Mereka berdua gendut-gendut tapi cantik. SP: 44 71 Ibu mertua Nyonya Deborah yang berumur hamper seratus tahun […] Nenek ini tak pernah tersenyum. Bajunya, kulitnya, rambutnya, gusinya yang sudah tak ditenggeri sebiji pun gigi, dan kucingmya, semuanya berwarna kelabu. Murung. Itulah kesan keseluruhan dirinya. From the way Ikal describes the Chinese, it shows that economically, he sees the Chinese as one of the controller of the Belitungese consumptive habit. However, culturally, he marginalizes them because of their appearance and characters that is different from the original inhabitant of the island, which are the native Belitung-Malays. Inequality in Belitung is portrayed through the economic imbalance as the consequence of economic restructuring of the colonized. Economic control is one of modern colonialism ways on producing inequality. Inequality that emerges is to strengthen colonial domination through the class system. The class system divides society into the highest and the lowest class based on their wealth. Here, the migrants comprise of the company executives and staffs as well as the Chinese. The economic imbalance that emerges is the effect of restructuring the economy that had been done previously by the Dutch. However, its effect does not stop in the end of colonization. Thus, the natives keep competing with the company people throughout different eras and under different controllers. Ikal’s descriptions on being poor and wealthy are given to cementing tension of economic imbalance. It is based on the occupation and income. The life of coolies and other professions that have low income is poor and belongs to the lowest class, whereas, PN Timah’s executives and staffs with their high income and prosperity, are classified into the wealthy and the highest class. Even when the native is compared to the Chinese, who do not work for the company, their positions are the poorest and the oppressed. It is because the Chinese controls their consumptive habit which means they make the natives use their money and make them poorer. As for the Chinese, they may gain profit from their trade then. PN Timah as the extension of colonial rules has the intention to dominate and control the native of Belitung. Economic imbalance is the consequence of the company’s domination that produces inequality which is represented in class system. Thus, the company as the legacy of Dutch colonization produces economic imbalance that continues to emerge among the native and the migrants. Nevertheless, people who are related to company still dominate the economic strength in Belitung, specifically the executives and the staffs since some of the native also work at the company, but their position is a coolie. Therefore, when it relates to the company, people who join it by default belong to the highest or the lowest class in Belitung.

B. Constructing the Attitudes of the Natives