Chinese and Proud of It

Soon after the Mandarin ban was lifted, Chinese began to be heard on TV and radio. Before 2000, the country had only one Chinese newspaper, and the Army controlled it. Now there are three, and the largest, Guo Ji Ri Bao, has a circulation of 60,000 and features content from Xinhua, the official Chinese press agency. Books, and CDs from China have become hot sellers. "There are no taboos anymore," says Benny Setiono, who published a history of Chinese Indonesians in 2003 that includes a frank discussion of the 1960s massacres.

Chinese children were once required to enroll in Indonesian-language schools. Today, Mandarin has become a part of the national curriculum, and Beijing is helping to train the teachers. "It's the young generation's responsibility to revive our culture; otherwise, it'll disappear," says 20-year-old Adhi, head of the eight-year-old Mandarin Club at Jakarta's Bina Nusantara University. The club boasts 473 active members, about 10 percent of who are non-Chinese. "Everything is open," says Fendi, one member. "We can do whatever we want."

Of course, Indonesians have good financial reasons to study all things Chinese. As Adhi says, "we have a lot to learn from China. Thirty years ago it was as poor as we were." China is now Indonesia's third largest trading partner. And last year 121 Chinese-financed projects were approved (up almost 20 times from 2002) for a total of $900 million, making China the fifth largest investor in Indonesia. In 2005, the two countries signed a strategic partnership aimed at boosting relations.

But not everyone is happy about the new Chinese pride. Wila Chandrawila Supriadi became the first Chinese-Indonesian woman elected to Parliament in 2006. She applauds most of the democratic reforms, but as a 65-year-old scarred by decades of forced assimilation, she's uneasy with some displays of Chinese culture. Young people "admire China and that is wrong," she says. "They have to accept that if we want to build a nation, we have to shed all cultural differences and become truly Indonesian." Many Chinese may fear a backlash. Lie, whose electronics shop in Jakarta's Chinatown was burned down by a mob in 1998, says, "It could still happen again. We never know."

But if the Olympics were any guide, Indonesia's Chinese are clear about their allegiances. Their country won just one gold during the Games, in badminton. But it beat a Chinese team, and Lie was thrilled. "Even though my blood is Chinese, I am born here, I live here, so I wish for Indonesia to win," he says. Meanwhile, in a sign of Jakarta's lingering ambivalence toward its neighbor, the highest-ranking official it sent to the opening ceremony was a junior assistant to the minister of Sports. Only one local TV channel broadcast the festivities, and "no one waved to our athletes when they paraded. What a shame," says Lie with a sigh. He may be right. But the mere fact he was able to discuss the matter shows how much Indonesia has changed.

© 2008