I

ndonesia’s independence, which is celebrated on Aug. 17 every year, was due in part to the resistance of the Betawi people to the colonial rulers of what was then Batavia — present day Jakarta — the central administrative city of the Dutch East Indies.

In spite of this, the misconception continues to abound that the Betawi, or native Jakartans, played no part in winning the nation’s independence.

In reality, Betawi historian JJ Rizal said in a discussion on Sunday, the Betawi made a significant contribution not just to the announcement of independence, or proklamasi (proclamation), but also to the long-running struggle for independence against the Dutch colonial authorities.

Rizal noted, for example, that the declaration of independence on Aug. 17, 1945, was broadcast on a radio assembled by a Betawi man named Abdulrahman Saleh, later canonized as a national hero.

“The broadcast was made two days after the event. Thanks to [Abdulrahman’s] efforts, the news of independence was spread across the country,” Rizal said.

Abdulrahman was not the only young Betawi to play a part in independence; many were instrumental in persuading subsequent first president Sukarno to proclaim independence as soon as possible.

“When independence was proclaimed, some of [the young Betawi people] were not aware it had
 been. They decided to meet Sukarno and urged him to reproclaim independence,” Rizal said. “But Sukarno said, ‘Never in history has independence been proclaimed twice.’”

Before independence, Betawi people also joined the fight against the Dutch authorities in their respective areas.

Among them was Haji Darip bin Kurdin, a prominent religious figure who remains well-known in Betawi circles but less so nationally. He fought the Dutch in the latter two decades of the 19th century in what is now Senen in Central Jakarta.

Darip was skilled in traditional martial arts and rumored to be invulnerable to all kinds of weapon. He had many followers who guarded the Senen area to prevent any Dutch from entering.

Another Betawi figure who mounted resistance to the colonial authorities was Pitung, who predates his compatriot Darip.

Pitung is often considered a fictional figure created to symbolize the Betawi fight against colonialism; historians, however, insist that he did in fact exist.

Former journalist and Betawi historian Alwi Shahab said that in Dutch writings, including some newspapers, Pitung was known as Betung and described as a small but energetic and agile person. After attacking and killing a number of Dutch soldiers, the colonial authorities placed him on their most-wanted list.

According to Rizal, Pitung was capable of using modern guns as well as traditional martial arts, earning him universal admiration.

As with many other notable figures of the period, Pitung was considered to be imbued with a kind of magic that protected him from weapons.

Better known than Pitung and Darip, meanwhile, for his major contribution to the independence movement is Husni Thamrin, an intellectual and national hero.

Rizal said Husni, a highly educated aristocrat, was different from other Betawi figures in that in that he used diplomacy and intellectual tactics to fight the colonial Dutch.

Husni, he said, employed the systems set up by the Dutch, such as the contract system, to fight the colonial authorities. “This was he was always able to win because the Dutch were reluctant to break their own laws,” Rizal explained.