author
E. F. E. Douwes Dekker
1879–1950
A fiery early Indonesian nationalist, journalist, and political organizer, he pushed for independence long before it became a mass movement. His life took him from the Boer War in South Africa to exile by the Dutch, and later to recognition as a national hero of Indonesia.
1 Audiobook
Het boek van Siman den Javaan Een roman van rijst, dividend en menschelijkheid
by E. F. E. Douwes Dekker
About the author
Born in Pasuruan, Java, on October 8, 1879, Ernest François Eugène Douwes Dekker was an influential voice in the early struggle against Dutch colonial rule. Of mixed European and Indonesian background, he became known for arguing that the people of the Dutch East Indies should have political rights and a shared national future.
Before he became a leading activist, he fought in the Second Boer War in South Africa. Back in the Indies, he worked as a journalist and publicist, using newspapers and essays to criticize colonial inequality. He was one of the founders of the Indische Partij, one of the first political organizations in the colony to call openly for self-government, and his activities led to exile by the Dutch authorities.
After Indonesian independence, he was also known as Danudirja Setiabudi. He died in Bandung on August 28, 1950. Remembered as a writer, organizer, and outspoken anti-colonial thinker, he helped lay the groundwork for the Indonesian nationalist movement years before independence was achieved.