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Arek Surabaya Reclaim the Urban Sphere

Arek Surabaya Reclaim the Urban Sphere

by | Feb 23, 2022 | Kelana Masa

M. Khoirurrizqi Awalalul M | Mahasiswa Ilmu Sejarah Universitas Jember | Jurnalis di Lembaga Pers Mahasiswa Tegal Boto |

 

At the beginning of the 20th century, many lands in the Surabaya region were owned by private individuals (Private sector). They rented the land to residents for housing. The prevailing relationship in this rental system was that workers had to submit agricultural produce and rent money that must be paid to the landlords. This condition has been occurring since the implementation of the Agrarische Wet in 1870. This regulation allowed private parties with large capital to obtain land ownership rights (Erfpacht) for up to 75 years.

Residents who had built houses on private land had to be evicted when the owner sold the land to the Gemeente (Municipal Government) of Surabaya. This case occurred frequently in the southern region of Surabaya as a target for urban development. Hageman (1859) wrote that since the mid-19th century, the southern region was largely controlled by private individuals utilizing residents as laborers to cultivate open land. According to him, many residents at that time were still rural, with the majority being farmers.

The focus of development carried out by the Gemeente Surabaya was to serve the increasing number of Europeans arriving. The purchase of private land began in the Keputran Lor area. Tillema, as quoted in the book “Merebut Ruang Kota: Aksi Rakyat Miskin Kota Surabaya 1900-1960” by Purnawan Basundoro, stated that the private land in the Keputran Lor area was sold by Tjhin Tjhik Kong Soe in 1888. The buyer was the housing developer company ‘Bouwmaatschappij Keputran’. The development process of the area began in the early 1900s.

As a result of the development, many residents who were evicted then occupied kampongs on the outskirts of elite European housing. They, unknowingly, formed the Arek subculture. One of their recorded movements was civil disobedience by several kampongs in Surabaya in 1915-1916. In relation to the phenomena of the twentieth century, this effort also cannot be separated from the national movement wagon. Even two figures recorded as the engines of this disobedience, namely: Mas Prawirodihardjo and Pak Siti, were members of Sarekat Islam (SI). SI is one of the political parties that consciously fought against the arbitrariness of landlords in the city of Surabaya.

Mas Prawirodihardjo was a resident of Kampung Ondomohen (One of the old settlements in the Genteng District, Surabaya) who worked as a construction supervisor. Meanwhile, Pak Siti alias Sadikin was a resident of Kampung Kedondong, Keputran Lor. He worked as a railroad foreman (Purnawan, 2009). Both believed that residents should not have to pay rent for private land that was actually theirs.

Specifically, in 1915 to 1916, the thoughts of Mas Prawirodihardjo and Pak Siti alias Sadikin spread widely in response to the evictions in the process of developing European settlements.

The form of civil disobedience at that time was the refusal of all obligations to private landlords. The refusal included not paying land rent and not giving a portion of agricultural produce. Residents also refused the village heads chosen by private individuals and appointed their own village heads. Some of them deliberately cut down trees and used the vacant private land as if it was their own.

Besides the residents of Keputran Lor, who directly felt the impact of eviction, unrest also spread to many kampongs in Surabaya occupying private lands. Purnawan recorded that in 1916, many occupants of private lands, which had not yet been sold or developed, filed lawsuits against the landlords at the Landraad. At that time, the court’s decision was in favor of the landlords. They then appealed to a higher court, the Raad Van Justitie, which eventually decided that the occupants of private lands had proprietary rights (zakelijke rechten) on those lands. Moreover, on September 12, 1917, the Raad Van Justitie court issued a decision granting land ownership rights to the occupants of private lands, provided they fulfilled certain obligations to the landlords.

The civil disobedience to reclaim rights to land and urban space shows that the solidarity of Arek Surabaya, built through kampongs, had an intellectual-organic nature. They realized that the more expensive European housing was built, the smaller their participation space in the city center would become. Not to mention the construction of industries that made certain skills or education a requirement for employment. The transition from rural to urban society experienced by Arek Surabaya turned out to be able to find its own form of solidarity from traditional to urban in the kampong community movement.

From Sustainability to Commodity

From Sustainability to Commodity

by | Feb 17, 2022 | Kelana Masa

Alfian Widi Santoso seorang mahasiswa Ilmu Sejarah, Universitas Airlangga. Ia juga aktif mengelola buletin sejarah “De Verleden”.

Colonialism significantly transformed the production and food consumption patterns of its colonized societies. This shift is evident from the phenomena during that period, notably the transition from the Cultivation System (cultuurstelsel) to the implementation of the Agrarische Wet and Suiker Wet in 1870. This change marked a shift in societal patterns from having a concept of food security to becoming consumeristic.

Indeed, this policy change had an impact on the life patterns of the colonized society due to a change in the production relations. This was indicated by the transformation in the ownership system established by the Cultivation System, which required farmers to plant production crops.

Originating from the development of the Cultivation System, it eventually undermined the position of native farmers who no longer had direct access to the land. The Cultivation System’s strategy, which prioritized government plantation commodities, resulted in a change in the work of native farmers to cultivate their land with disproportionate earnings.

Unfortunately, the issues of the Cultivation System cannot be generalized, as specific regions might not have experienced similar events. However, generally, this phenomenon was prevalent in various areas, with differences in the landscape horizon of community residence, such as rural or urban areas. For example, the Resident of Semarang experienced a famine in 1849-1850 (Retno; 2019), a consequence of the Cultivation System impoverishing the colonized population.

In line with these cases, the Cultivation System policy led to a change in land ownership since the land could no longer be cultivated, having been transformed into plantation ownership. The peak of this transformation was the implementation of the Agrarische Wet in 1870, emerging from the shift in the colonial political landscape now dominated by the liberal group.

This law extensively regulated land rights. Land in the colonial territories began to be controlled based on this policy. Land ownership was regulated through the Eigendom land rights for natives outlined in colonial laws, also addressing the abolition of the compulsory labor system or Corvee labour (Scott; 1989).

However, this colonial-style liberal politics still brought disaster, especially when private parties could freely lease land for up to 75 years – as regulated in the agrarian law of 1870. During this era of liberal politics, Dutch plantation entrepreneurs and other European countries gained enormous profits based on colonial super profits. European entrepreneurs benefited from labor working long hours with low wages.

On the other hand, capitalists were not burdened with infrastructure development costs as these were financed by tax levies on colonial subjects by the colonial government (Achdian; 2021). This situation led to a social transformation among the agrarian community, where fields that were initially used for food security were turned into commercial agriculture.

The Javanese adage “Mangan ora mangan, sing penting kumpul” (Eating or not eating, what’s important is being together) has lost its significance due to the social transformation among the colonized society, a consequence of Dutch East Indies’ political policies. The freedom promised by the liberals was not as sweet as expected. This policy led to a massive shift, both economically creating dependencies and turning the colonized farmers into landless individuals.

The loss of the ability to embody this adage was caused by the instability of the welfare of the colonized society under capitalism. This is a result of the liberal politics, where the community became landless due to the closure of resources in the village environment, shrinking additional income in traditional economic activities of farmers and others.

This situation led to a change in the priorities of society. Money became more important than food security because only with money could they meet their daily needs. Reluctantly, the farmers had to lease their lands to plantation companies—where the rent money was relatively small compared to the profits reaped by the plantation later, borrowing loans to work in factories or plantations. This impoverishment was severe, with rural or urban communities beginning to depend on credit, and many farmers also leasing their land. They had to extend the lease of land with the sugar industry before the lease period ended to get money.

This impoverishment also led to food shortages during the intense commercialization process in rural areas. Calculations in 1930 showed that around 8 million farmers in Java only cultivated land that increased by about 3 percent in size. This impoverishment eventually caused rural farmers to respond by shifting their dietary patterns (Rennet, 1974).

On the other hand, the commercialization process in rural areas resulted in many farmers being landless, eventually creating a social contradiction within it due to many factors such as population growth, narrowing side jobs, price fluctuations that strengthened the position of landlords (Vries; 1982).

Moreover, the needs of the colonized society had to be met, and the way to fulfill them was by going to factories, Chinese garden entrepreneurs, native land tenants, and borrowing money from banks, village barns, or pawnshops, where the farmers became landless because their land or rice fields were used as collateral for their loans. This problem was exacerbated when they could not repay the debt, and eventually, the cultivated land had to be handed over. This caused these farmers to become wage laborers on their formerly mortgaged land.

In other words, this phenomenon spread throughout Java, including Semarang and Surabaya. This phenomenon is a sign of the strengthening of a small group of farmers who developed within the colonial economic structure and engaged in global economic activities through the planting of export commodity crops. On the other hand, many farmers became landless, giving form to the process of differentiation in rural areas. In short, Indonesia, at that time as a colony, underwent a transition from the Cultivation System to the Agrarische Wet 1870, which had profound consequences and changed many things from life philosophy to the consumption patterns of the colonized society. In the end, the colonized society had to endure the bitterness of losing land, and as a result, they had to follow the colonial pattern to survive. This pattern was cheap labor work as factory workers to meet their living needs.

The Colonial Economy in Surabaya

The Colonial Economy in Surabaya

by | Jan 15, 2022 | Kelana Masa

Surabaya, known as an industrial city, is a result of Dutch colonial formation. Industry has changed the economic pattern of Arek Surabaya in the 19th century. This construction led to the structural marginalization of Surabaya’s residents in terms of employment. It took a considerable time for Arek Surabaya to rise and follow the pace of industrialization during that era.

Initially, Surabaya was a settlement with an agrarian economic pattern since being controlled by the Mataram Kingdom (Lombard, 2000: 57). The majority of its society worked as farmers with extensive areas of rice fields and fields. Despite this, Surabaya was also a trade center (Ampel Denta) but was less bustling compared to the port of Gresik, where the VOC had been trading spices at that time.

After the dissolution of the VOC (1799) as a major trading company in Southeast Asia, Indonesia was taken over by the Dutch colonial government. From this transfer of power, Gresik was no longer an international trade route, instead, Surabaya was made the next trading port city (Basundoro, 2001: 153). During this time, Surabaya began to transition from agrarian to industrialization in the early 19th century (pre-industrial era). This can be seen from the emergence of large-scale industries, namely the Weapons Factory and weapons equipment. At this time, Surabaya began to see new industries emerging. So, when was Surabaya nicknamed as an industrial city? Since the Cultuurstelsel in 1830.

Cultuurstelsel is a cultivation system regulated by the Dutch colonial government with the intention to follow the international trade market. During the Cultuurstelsel or commonly known as forced cultivation, the colonial government intensively formed Surabaya as an Industrial City. From this policy, the area of South Surabaya to Sidoarjo became a center for sugarcane plantations, even the Surabaya residency was called the largest sugar producer in Java. The establishment of sugar factories in various places created new and diverse job opportunities. At this time, many new entrepreneurs emerged from European and Eastern Foreign circles, namely the Chinese and Arabs. The companies they held were in transportation, commodity transport, and others.

The ownership of companies by foreigners marked the beginning of the professional shift for the natives or Arek Surabaya. The majority of them worked as laborers or odd jobs. Some others remained in the outskirts with professions as farmers and fishermen. Moreover, their living conditions were in village areas. This sectoral marginalization became a symbol of poverty unfairly attributed to local residents by European newcomers. This is because of the European view that a person’s ‘social status’ is measured by their place of residence (Basundoro, 2010: 135).

This marginalization condition made Arek Surabaya struggle for half a century to adjust to the pace of industrialization in the city. In the 19th century, home industries such as handicrafts managed by local communities began to emerge in their villages. The products made were finished and semi-finished goods to support ship instruments, cigars, furniture, and houses. At that time, the villages in the city of Surabaya were identified with artisan villages, such as Pecantikan village as a repair and watchmaking village, Pesapen village as a furniture village, Pabean village as a brass craftsman village, and Maspati village as an ivory and horn craftsman village. The handicraft industries that developed in Surabaya gave birth to skilled workers, commonly referred to as artisans (Samidi, 2017: 161). The industrial climate in the mid-19th century shows that the economic basis of Arek Surabaya or natives gradually improved.

The Surabaya we encounter today is the second-largest industrial city in Indonesia after Jakarta. Being an industrial city since the colonial era is a historical reality to this day. The transformation of Surabaya from agrarian to industrial was indeed engineered by the Dutch colonials. As a result, the employment patterns in Surabaya are very heterogeneous.

In short, the transformation of the economic pattern in Surabaya is artificial. The presence of industrialization waves in this city is caused by historical conditions and colonial policies. These factors have changed the economic landscape, which was originally agrarian, into industrial.

Aria Raharja Hidayat. Peneliti Arek Institute.

Surabaya, known as an industrial city, is a result of Dutch colonial formation. Industry has changed the economic pattern of Arek Surabaya in the 19th century. This construction led to the structural marginalization of Surabaya’s residents in terms of employment. It took a considerable time for Arek Surabaya to rise and follow the pace of industrialization during that era.

Initially, Surabaya was a settlement with an agrarian economic pattern since being controlled by the Mataram Kingdom (Lombard, 2000: 57). The majority of its society worked as farmers with extensive areas of rice fields and fields. Despite this, Surabaya was also a trade center (Ampel Denta) but was less bustling compared to the port of Gresik, where the VOC had been trading spices at that time.

After the dissolution of the VOC (1799) as a major trading company in Southeast Asia, Indonesia was taken over by the Dutch colonial government. From this transfer of power, Gresik was no longer an international trade route, instead, Surabaya was made the next trading port city (Basundoro, 2001: 153). During this time, Surabaya began to transition from agrarian to industrialization in the early 19th century (pre-industrial era). This can be seen from the emergence of large-scale industries, namely the Weapons Factory and weapons equipment. At this time, Surabaya began to see new industries emerging. So, when was Surabaya nicknamed as an industrial city? Since the Cultuurstelsel in 1830.

Cultuurstelsel is a cultivation system regulated by the Dutch colonial government with the intention to follow the international trade market. During the Cultuurstelsel or commonly known as forced cultivation, the colonial government intensively formed Surabaya as an Industrial City. From this policy, the area of South Surabaya to Sidoarjo became a center for sugarcane plantations, even the Surabaya residency was called the largest sugar producer in Java. The establishment of sugar factories in various places created new and diverse job opportunities. At this time, many new entrepreneurs emerged from European and Eastern Foreign circles, namely the Chinese and Arabs. The companies they held were in transportation, commodity transport, and others.

The ownership of companies by foreigners marked the beginning of the professional shift for the natives or Arek Surabaya. The majority of them worked as laborers or odd jobs. Some others remained in the outskirts with professions as farmers and fishermen. Moreover, their living conditions were in village areas. This sectoral marginalization became a symbol of poverty unfairly attributed to local residents by European newcomers. This is because of the European view that a person’s ‘social status’ is measured by their place of residence (Basundoro, 2010: 135).

This marginalization condition made Arek Surabaya struggle for half a century to adjust to the pace of industrialization in the city. In the 19th century, home industries such as handicrafts managed by local communities began to emerge in their villages. The products made were finished and semi-finished goods to support ship instruments, cigars, furniture, and houses. At that time, the villages in the city of Surabaya were identified with artisan villages, such as Pecantikan village as a repair and watchmaking village, Pesapen village as a furniture village, Pabean village as a brass craftsman village, and Maspati village as an ivory and horn craftsman village. The handicraft industries that developed in Surabaya gave birth to skilled workers, commonly referred to as artisans (Samidi, 2017: 161). The industrial climate in the mid-19th century shows that the economic basis of Arek Surabaya or natives gradually improved.

The Surabaya we encounter today is the second-largest industrial city in Indonesia after Jakarta. Being an industrial city since the colonial era is a historical reality to this day. The transformation of Surabaya from agrarian to industrial was indeed engineered by the Dutch colonials. As a result, the employment patterns in Surabaya are very heterogeneous.

In short, the transformation of the economic pattern in Surabaya is artificial. The presence of industrialization waves in this city is caused by historical conditions and colonial policies. These factors have changed the economic landscape, which was originally agrarian, into industrial.