Legacy of Japanese Occupation (1942–1945)
- Japan’s defeat of the Dutch in 1942 ended three centuries of colonial control, giving Indonesians administrative experience and a sense of political agency.
- The Japanese government allowed nationalist leaders such as Sukarno and Mohammad Hatta to organize mass mobilization campaigns and manage local affairs.
- Institutions like PETA (Defenders of the Homeland) and Putera (Center of the People’s Power) trained Indonesians in leadership, propaganda, and military discipline.
- The occupation promoted Bahasa Indonesia as the national language and strengthened a shared sense of national identity.
- Although Japanese rule caused hardship through forced labor (romusha) and food shortages, it laid the administrative and ideological foundation for postwar independence.
Definition
PETA
Indonesian volunteer army created by Japan, later forming the core of the postwar national military.
Definition
Romusha
- Forced labor system used by Japan in occupied territories, including Indonesia.
Nationalist Leadership and the Proclamation of Independence (1945)
- When Japan surrendered in August 1945, nationalist leaders acted quickly to prevent the return of Dutch control.
- On 17 August 1945, Sukarno and Hatta proclaimed the Republic of Indonesia, appealing to both nationalism and self-determination.
- The Pancasila ideology, outlined by Sukarno, provided a unifying set of values: nationalism, internationalism, democracy, social justice, and belief in one God.
- The new republic gained support from a population disillusioned by colonial exploitation and Japanese repression.
- Nationalists had experience, organizational networks, and local loyalty that the returning Dutch could not easily overcome.
