Iskaq Tjokrohadisurjo

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Iskaq Tjokrohadisurjo
Iskaq Tjokroadisurjo, Kami Perkenalkan (1954), p25.jpg
Minister of Economic Affairs
In office
30 July 1953 – 8 November 1954
Prime MinisterAli Sastroamidjojo
Preceded bySoemanang Soerjowinoto
Succeeded byRoosseno
Minister of Home Affairs
In office
27 April 1951 – 3 April 1952
Prime MinisterSukiman
Preceded byAssaat
Succeeded byMohammad Roem
Resident of Surakarta
In office
July 1946 – November 1946
Preceded bySindoeredjo
Succeeded bySjamsuridjal
Personal details
Born(1896-07-11)11 July 1896
Jombang, Dutch East Indies
Died11 September 1984(1984-09-11) (aged 88)
Jakarta, Indonesia
NationalityIndonesia
Political partyIndonesian National Party

Iskaq Tjokrohadisurjo (11 July 1896 – 11 September 1984) was an Indonesian advocate and politician who served as Minister of Economic Affairs and Minister of Home Affairs during the 1950s.

Originating in Jombang Regency and being educated in law, he received higher education at Leiden University after a five-year career in various colonial courts. Iskaq was one of the earliest native Indonesian advocates during the Dutch colonial period, founding multiple law offices across the country. He also took part in the nationalist movement, being a co-founder of the Indonesian National Party (PNI) and being arrested along with its other leaders in 1929.

During the Indonesian National Revolution, Iskaq briefly served as the Resident of Banyumas and Mayor of Surakarta, before becoming Minister of Home Affairs during the Sukiman Cabinet. His PNI-favoring policies were controversial for other parties, and he was replaced in the succeeding Wilopo Cabinet. He returned to government office as Minister of Economic Affairs in the First Ali Sastroamidjojo Cabinet, where he became entangled in a graft scandal. He was eventually found guilty and sentenced to prison, but he received a pardon from Sukarno. He remained active in the PNI and attempted to reunite the party during a 1965 split, until withdrawing from party politics after PNI's fusion into the Indonesian Democratic Party in the New Order period.

Early life and education[]

Iskaq was born in the village of Ngepeh, in Jombang Regency, on 11 July 1896.[1] His parents were Javanese nobility, and his father worked as a civil servant for the colonial government. Iskaq began schooling at a village school (Volksschool), before moving to Nganjuk to enter Europeesche Lagere School between 1904 and 1911. He continued his studies at Rechts-Hogeschool (Law High School) in Batavia, and between 1917 to 1922 he worked in legal courts - initially as an assistant at the district courts of Madiun and Ponorogo, then as a jury in Magelang, a clerk at the high court in Surabaya, and finally a judge at the district court in Semarang. He then enrolled at the University of Leiden, graduating in 1925 and being awarded a Meester in de Rechten (Mr.) title.[2][3]

While the Perhimpoenan Indonesia was active in Leiden, Iskaq was not active in the organization, as he was working at the stock market and did not want to risk his employment. He was still interested in politics, however, and when he graduated on 30 June 1925 and returned to Java in 1926, he decided against working for the colonial government.[3][4] According to Iskaq in a 1971 interview, his decision was motivated by his more egalitarian treatment in the Netherlands compared to his treatment by colonial authorities back home.[5]

Career[]

Pre-independence and revolution[]

Upon his return from Leiden, Iskaq founded a law firm in Batavia along with Sartono, Ali Sastroamidjojo, and Wiryono Kusumo. This was the first native Indonesian law office in Batavia. He later moved to Bandung and founded another law office there (as he had a Dutch wife, whom he thought would fit in better in Bandung), and left leadership of the Batavia office to Sartono.[4][6] He was one of the founders of the General Study Club (Algemeene Studieclub) in Bandung, formed on 29 November 1925.[7] When the PNI was founded in 1927, Iskaq was one of its co-founders, and in the initial provisional leadership was appointed as secretary/treasurer while Sukarno served as chairman. Iskaq had also prepared the provisional statutes for the organisation.[8]

In 1929, along with Sukarno and a few others, Iskaq was arrested due to involvement in PNI - and then shortly after released, under the conditions that he not return to Batavia or Bandung. He moved to Surabaya and set up a law office there (also the first native Indonesian law office in the city), and then to Makassar in 1930, setting up another office. He then left for Manado, leaving the Makassar office to Soenario, and set up yet another law office. He returned to Surabaya in 1933,[4] and there he worked as an advocate at the Surabaya High Court.[3] Iskaq's Batavia office was highly involved in politics, with many of the advocates there being PNI members.[9] Iskaq later became a Partindo member, and then joined Parindra after Partindo's dissolution.[10]

According to Iskaq in his autobiography, he had encountered a Japanese agent at Bangkok in mid-1941, and Iskaq provided the agent with "all the information [he] could".[11] During the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies, Iskaq was made the assistant resident of Banyumas,[12][13] and was appointed into the Chuo Sangi In, a representative body.[14] Following Indonesian independence and the Japanese surrender, Iskaq became the resident, and facilitated negotiations of the disarming of 450 Japanese troops in Banyumas - hence giving their weapons to the nationalist units under Sudirman.[15] He also abolished a traditional system of tax-exempt religious villages in Banyumas.[16]

On 18 July 1946, Iskaq was appointed as resident of Surakarta, with Sudiro as his deputy. As part of this office, Iskaq and Sudiro organized the region, previously under the Surakarta Sunanate and Mangkunegaran administration during the colonial period, into a regular Residency. To this end, they merged the former territories of the two princely states and reorganized them into the city of Surakarta and the regencies of Sukoharjo and Karanganyar. In November 1946 they were kidnapped by communists, and although they were shortly after released after pressure from the Republican government in Yogyakarta.[17][18][19] Iskaq later took part in the Renville Agreement, serving as secretary to the Indonesian delegation.[3]

Interior minister[]

Iskaq's first cabinet post was in the Sukiman Cabinet, when he was appointed as Minister of the Interior as a PNI representative.[20] Some two weeks after his appointment, Iskaq issued an order to cease the functioning of regional legislatures - which brought him into conflict with the Masyumi Party and ended in a compromise whereas no new regional legislatures would be formed and the existing ones would be replaced based on existing regulations at a later time.[21] Iskaq also caused political controversy due to his nominations for governor posts, namely Sanusi Hardjadinata (a PNI member) for West Java (a Masyumi stronghold), and Sudiro (a Javanese) for Sulawesi. These appointments resulted in a motion for censure against Iskaq, which failed to pass.[22]

In July 1951, Iskaq agreed with the DPV (a Dutch tobacco plantation company based in North Sumatra) to return half of its plantation (130,000 out of 255,000 hectares), which had by now been occupied by local farmers. While Sukiman's ministry did not act much on this agreement, the Wilopo Cabinet's attempt to enforce the agreement resulted in clashes between the farmers and police in Tanjung Morawa, with five people killed.[23] Regarding Acehnese autonomy, Iskaq attempted to assert central government authority by transferring administration some areas to East Sumatra and Tapanuli, replacing a number of officials, and in March 1952 terminating the governorship of Daud Beureu'eh.[24] Following the fall of the Sukiman Cabinet, the ensuing PNI-Masyumi Wilopo Cabinet did not include Iskaq due to Masyumi objections, and he was replaced by Mohammad Roem.[25]

In 1952, Iskaq had also founded the 17 August 1945 University in Jakarta, as part of the 17 August 1945 educational foundation. He would serve as the foundation's chairman until mid-1982.[26][27]

Economic minister and prosecution[]

Iskaq returned to a cabinet post as the Minister of Economic Affairs in the First Ali Sastroamidjojo Cabinet.[28] Under Iskaq's ministership, access to foreign exchange for import was significantly restricted, with a ministerial decree in August 1954 assigning 80-90 percent of foreign exchange being assigned to indigenous importers with licenses. While the decree was later revoked, it still saw some enforcement, and led to the growth of "Ali Baba" partnerships with an indigenous license-holder and a Chinese Indonesian trader, and there was widespread corruption in the licensing process. Iskaq's policy was controversial, being opposed by economists such as Minister of Finance Ong Eng Die, Bank Indonesia chairman Sjafruddin Prawiranegara and alienating coalition parties such as Nahdlatul Ulama and the Indonesian Islamic Union Party.[29][30][31] The licenses were also often issued at a marked up price, with the issuance of the licenses benefitting the PNI financially.[29][32]

Additionally, Iskaq also replaced many high ranking officials of state-owned banks and government bodies under the ministry with PNI members. This was again controversial to other parties, with a motion of no confidence filed against him by Masyumi politicians in April 1954.[33] While the parliament had attacked Iskaq's policies as early as October 1953, alleged favoritism of firms related to PNI caused some parliament members in the government to vote against Iskaq, though the motion was still defeated.[32] Eventually, following pressure from coalition members and a cabinet crisis caused by the withdrawal of the Great Indonesia Unity Party from the cabinet, Ali Sastroamidjojo conducted a cabinet reshuffle, replacing Iskaq with Roosseno Soerjohadikoesoemo on 8 November 1954.[34]

During the Burhanuddin Harahap Cabinet, Attorney General Soeprapto summoned Iskaq for questioning on August 1955, when Iskaq had left for the Netherlands to enroll a son at a special needs school. While a number of officials at the import licenses office were arrested, Iskaq was only investigated and not prosecuted upon his return to Indonesia in April 1956.[35] He was again investigated in April 1958, and was formally accused of graft. In response to the trial and media accusations of him obtaining personal financial benefits from office, Iskaq publicized his financial situation, with him receiving dividends from a number of firms, serving in a board of a pharmaceutical company, and owning a substantial amount of shares in a Dutch insurance company. Iskaq also maintained his private law practices and worked there when not in office. Iskaq was eventually convicted of nine months in prison, fined, and had some of his assets seized. His appeal was rejected, but he received a pardon from President Sukarno, whom he had co-founded the PNI with.[3][36]

PNI split[]

In late 1965, following the 30 September Movement, as internal disputes within PNI arose from the suspension of members such as Osa Maliki, Hadisubeno Sosrowerdojo and Hardi, Iskaq attempted to organize a committee to reunite the party, but this was not accepted by incumbent leadership under Ali Sastroamidjojo.[37] He attempted to organize a party congress ahead of schedule, but this did not bear fruit and instead meetings between the opposing factions were organized by Suharto in March 1966. Iskaq was appointed as chairman for an emergency party congress, which was held on 24 April 1966 in Bandung. During the congress, many delegations who supported Sastroamidjojo's leadership were restricted or arrested, with the military being friendly to Osa Maliki's faction of the party. Following private negotiations, Sastroamidjojo acquitted to Maliki's demands, and Maliki was made chairman of PNI.[38]

Later life and death[]

After PNI's poor performance in the 1971 legislative election and its fusion into the Indonesian Democratic Party in 1973, Iskaq refused to participate in the new party.[6] He founded the "Marhaenism Foundation" in 1980 and the "Indonesian National Movement" in 1982 in an attempt to organize former PNI members.[39] He died on 11 September 1984 due to a heart attack and related complications.[40]

References[]

  1. ^ Tjokrohadisurjo 1986, p. 41.
  2. ^ Ministry of Information 1954, p. 33.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e Yasin, Muhammad (15 January 2020). "Mr. Iskaq Tjokrohadisurjo dan Sejarah Firma Hukum di Indonesia". Hukum Online (in Indonesian). Retrieved 28 May 2021.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Lev 1976, p. 154.
  5. ^ Lev 1976, p. 149.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "Iskaq Tjokrohadisoerjo, Pendiri dan Kader Abadi PNI". Koran Sulindo (in Indonesian). 27 August 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  7. ^ Ingleson 1979, p. 20.
  8. ^ Ingleson 1979, p. 33.
  9. ^ Lev 1976, p. 155.
  10. ^ Muljana, Slamet (1986). Kesadaran nasional, dari kolonialisme sampai kemerdekaan: teks pelengkap mata pelajaran sejarah nasional Indonesia untuk SMTA (in Indonesian). Inti Idayu Press. p. 58.
  11. ^ Tjokrohadisurjo 1986, pp. 10–11.
  12. ^ Gandasubrata, S. M. (1953). "An account of the Japanese occupation of Banjumas Residency, Java, March 1942 to August 1945" (PDF). Cornell University. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  13. ^ Tjokrohadisurjo 1986, pp. 12–13.
  14. ^ Tjokrohadisurjo 1986, p. 10.
  15. ^ Anderson 2006, p. 244.
  16. ^ Lev 1976, p. 165.
  17. ^ Anderson 2006, p. 403.
  18. ^ Poeze, Harry A. (2010). Tan Malaka, Gerakan Kiri, dan Revolusi Indonesia Jilid 3: Maret 1947-Agustus 1948 (in Indonesian). Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia. p. 105. ISBN 978-979-461-757-1.
  19. ^ Tjokrohadisurjo 1986, pp. 13–15.
  20. ^ Feith 2006, p. 180.
  21. ^ Feith 2006, p. 183.
  22. ^ Feith 2006, p. 184.
  23. ^ Feith 2006, pp. 293–294.
  24. ^ Sjamsuddin, Nazaruddin (1985). The Republican Revolt: A Study of the Acehnese Rebellion. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. p. 53. ISBN 978-9971-988-16-6.
  25. ^ Feith 2006, p. 228.
  26. ^ "Profile". uta45jakarta.ac.id (in Indonesian). 17 August 1945 University Jakarta. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  27. ^ Tjokrohadisurjo 1986, pp. 25–29.
  28. ^ Feith 2006, p. 339.
  29. ^ Jump up to: a b Golay, Frank H.; Anspach, Ralph; Pfanner, M. Ruth (1969). Underdevelopment and Economic Nationalism in Southeast Asia. Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-0493-1.
  30. ^ Feith 2006, p. 351.
  31. ^ Lindblad, J. Thomas (November 2002). "The Importance of Indonesianisasi during the Transition from the 1930s to the 1960s". Itinerario. 26 (3–4): 55. doi:10.1017/S0165115300015680. S2CID 73599617.
  32. ^ Jump up to: a b Feith 2006, p. 380.
  33. ^ Feith 2006, pp. 369–371.
  34. ^ Feith 2006, pp. 336, 382.
  35. ^ Feith 2006, pp. 423, 477.
  36. ^ Lev 1976, p. 161.
  37. ^ McIntyre 1972, pp. 198–199.
  38. ^ McIntyre 1972, pp. 207–209.
  39. ^ Nalenan, Ruben (1982). Iskaq Tjokrohadisurjo, alumni desa bersemangat banteng (in Indonesian). Gunung Agung. p. 177.
  40. ^ "Mr Iskaq Tjokrohadisurjo dimakamkan". Kompas (in Indonesian). 12 September 1984. Retrieved 1 June 2021.

Bibliography[]

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