“We Indonesians don’t read!” is a common trope, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Indonesia, in fact, has a rich history in reading and writing, a culture deeply rooted in the nation’s intellectual traditions. Books were the treasured tools of the country’s earliest intelligentsia, playing a fundamental role in the growth and evolution of national consciousness. Here we delve into the impact literary culture has had on significant figures, and call for a return to Indonesia’s love of books and reading.
Mohammad Hatta, a key figure in Indonesia’s fight for independence and the country’s first vice president, was known to be a bibliophile who spent his entire life among books. He loved books so much that being away from them would give him anxiety. When the Dutch colonial government exiled him to Boven Digul, Papua, in 1935, all he could think about was how he could transport his books there. For Hatta, it was acceptable for his body to be imprisoned, as long as his mind could be free to wander through books.
The Dutch government finally allowed Hatta to take his books with him, giving him just three days to pack. Hatta had to travel back and forth from Glodok Prison to his home on Jl. Sawah Besar, West Jakarta. With the help of his nephews, Hatta packed his books into 16 iron crates. Through them, Hatta filled his days in Boven Digul by writing and teaching economics and philosophy to fellow prisoners.
In December 1936, he was moved to Banda Neira in Maluku, along with Soetan Sjahrir (Indonesia’s first prime minister). Hatta’s books came with him. He continued to write, including an article for Sin Tit Po magazine published in Surabaya, East Java. The exile of Hatta and Sjahrir ended on 1 February 1942. Crates of books were transported back from Banda Neira to Jakarta. It is estimated that Hatta had collected around 10,000 books throughout his lifetime and wrote 180 titles himself, such as the phenomenal ‘Greek Philosophy’ in 1941, which he used as a dowry upon marrying his wife Rachmi, and ‘Our Democracy’ in 1960.
In addition to Hatta, Soekarno, Indonesia’s first president, was also a book enthusiast. In his autobiography ‘Bung Karno: The Voice of the People’ written by Cindy Adams, Soekarno stated, “And there [in books] I met great people. Their thoughts became my thoughts, their ideals were the basis of my stance.”Soekarno was an accomplished and prolific writer from a young age. He even served as an editor for a magazine published by Sarekat Islam. Soekarno’s books, including 1933’s ‘Achieving an Independent Indonesia’, ‘The Birth of Pancasila’ published in 1945, ‘Sarinah’ (1951), and the monumental ‘Under the Banner of Revolution’ Volume 1 (1959) and Volume 2 (1960), demonstrates his commitment to detail and citing original sources. He made sure to credit the authors who inspired or influenced his thinking and their complete book titles, indicating the breadth of his reading.
Soetan Sjahrir is another name that cannot be excluded from the list of Indonesian figures who were passionate about books. In his own book titled ‘Sjahrir: Politics and Exile in Indonesia’, historian Rudolf Mrazek describes Sjahrir as a bookworm. Sjahrir claimed to have read hundreds of books from when he was a teenager, which included Dutch children’s stories.
For Soekarno, Hatta, and Soetan Sjahrir, books were not just a source of knowledge; they were tools of resistance. It can be said that the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) was built by a book culture that greatly influenced the thinking of its founding fathers, including Soekarno, Hatta, Sjahrir, Tan Malaka, and many more. They were voracious readers, as well as accomplished writers.
Tan Malaka himself produced a treatise titled ‘Mass Action’ in 1926. It was hastily written, printed, and published in Singapore in response to the call for a revolution during Dutch colonial rule. It can be said that the treatise served as a handbook for the nation’s freedom fighters at the time. In 1943, under the pseudonym Iljas Hussein, Tan Malaka wrote and independently published ‘Materialism Dialectics Logic’ (Madilog). He was living in Batavia at the time, in hiding from the Japanese government. He spent three hours a day writing ‘Madilog’ (568 pages), or a total of 720 hours over eight months from July 1942 to March 1943.
The extensive reading of Hatta, Soekarno, Sjahrir, and Tan Malaka helped them develop critical thinking and political strategies, as well as their vision for an independent Indonesia. From political theory and history to philosophy, both Western and Eastern, the wide breadth of literary works they consumed allowed them to formulate strong ideological foundations for the country.
For example, Soekarno was influenced by Karl Marx, Mahatma Gandhi, and various nationalist thinkers, shaping his ideas on Pancasila and Indonesian socialism. Hatta, a scholar of economics and politics, was deeply engaged with the works of European and Islamic intellectuals, helping him strategize Indonesia’s economic and governance systems. Sjahrir, known for his intellectualism, had a broad understanding of democracy and socialism, which contributed to Indonesia’s early democratic ideals. Apart from Karl Marx, Tan Malaka was also influenced by the books of Friedrich Engels and Vladimir Lenin, who were important figures in the history of Marxism. Even Friedrich Nietzsche served as one of his early political role models.
The reading voracity of Indonesia’s founding fathers is enough to prove how reading culture has spread as a symbol of intellectuality in the early 20th century. The Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC) directly and indirectly brought the culture of reading books here in the 17th century, when more advanced models of the printing press spread further across Europe.
Furthermore, the book culture of Indonesia’s intelligentsia grew alongside the book culture of the literati. After the country’s independence, books continued to shape national identity and education. The government promoted literature that reinforced unity and used it as an instrument of resistance. Writers like Chairil Anwar and the Angkatan 45 (Generation of ‘45) used poetry and prose to express patriotism, struggles, and the hope for an independent Indonesia. The works of Pramoedya Ananta Toer, particularly his ‘Buru Quartet’, highlighted the historical and political struggles of the Indonesian people even as he was facing censorship and imprisonment. The resilience of books and the wisdom they carried were essential to strengthening democracy and intellectual discourse—they have always been at the heart of the nation’s progress.
Literary Culture in Modern Indonesia
What about today, after decades of Indonesian independence? What we are witnessing now is that books are no longer the people’s primary reading material. The simple act of reading a book is becoming increasingly difficult, defeated by the distractions of a digital world that offers more interesting avenues of consuming stories and information through audio and visual media.
Indonesia’s culture of reading books has been declining since 2015, and its literacy level or interest in reading continues to lag behind other countries. UNESCO once ranked Indonesia second to last in terms of world literacy, demonstrating that interest in reading is very low, only 0.001%. This means that out of 1,000 Indonesians, only one is an avid reader. In a survey conducted by Central Connecticut State University in March 2016, Indonesia ranked 60th out of 61 countries in terms of reading interest. Meanwhile, in 2020, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) showed that only around 10% of the Indonesian population read books.
Several factors contribute to this low level of interest. According to Hikmat Darmawan, the founder of B(l)ooks bookstore and an avid observer and writer of pop culture, especially comics, Indonesia’s book infrastructure is unhealthy.
“What’s causing all of this is that Indonesians are having trouble getting physical books, and that has to do with the unhealthy infrastructure of the printed book industry. This involves all aspects [of the industry], from publishing and the paper trading system to logistics — as in shipping and distribution, which prevents books from reaching potential markets. The distribution of books is concentrated in Java. Book infrastructure should be built commensurate with its strategic value,” he says.
Hikmat still remembers the reach of RA Kosasih’s comics and Buya Hamka’s books in the 1960s, when they were eagerly awaited by readers as far as Manado in North Sulawesi and Medan in North Sumatra. Back then, smaller cities and towns were still home to book publishers, such as Surabaya, Kupang in East Nusa Tenggara, Kudus and Pekalongan in Central Java, and Cirebon in West Java. But over the years, they gradually closed their doors, and the books they had released faded from circulation—from religious tomes to comics and novels.
According to Hikmat, the main reasons behind their disappearance were dwindling paper supplies and inadequate infrastructure. Additionally, it can’t be discounted that in 1965, when Indonesia was at the peak of a political crisis, many editors of newspapers and books fled for fear of being massacred. To this day, Indonesia’s book industry has never fully recovered, Hikmat says.
“In 2003, I was in Tentena, Central Sulawesi, delivering a comic workshop. When I wanted to photocopy my presentation materials, I had to go to Poso. There, I chatted with the print shop workers and talked about books. They admitted they had not seen a book in a long time. They used to read a lot, but bookshops have all but disappeared and the closest one was in the capital Palu—which was hundreds of kilometres away,” he adds. “Meanwhile, the newspaper comes in the afternoon. That shows that Indonesians still have an interest in reading, but it hasn’t been allowed to develop because the product is not there.” In his view, digital media is not the largest threat to Indonesia’s book culture. In fact, sales figures from international book industry circles suggest that e-books are not selling as much as printed books. So, from a business perspective, the money is in bookstores and the print industry.
“Japan, for example, is very digitalised, but there is still a lot of interest in reading books. People may prefer to read on their mobile phones when traveling by train, but the interest in physical books has not decreased and the number of books published has not decreased either,” Hikmat explains. “Even in Frankfurt and Brussels, where I attended a literature festival and book fair, I saw many people reading printed books. Editions of ‘Asterix’ and ‘Tintin’ alone can boast 1 million copies in print. What’s interesting is that the people I met there told me they read books for entertainment. They stare at monitors all day at work and don’t want to stare at another one when reading books. So, revive the infrastructure, revive the ecosystem, and revive individual readers and writers. That’s very possible and has economic value.”
Although the digital era has brought about major changes in lifestyles and reading habits, it is important to maintain and improve the culture of reading books. Schools should develop programmes to support this revival, channelling students’ interest in reading. With sustained effort and dedication, Indonesia could foster a new generation of intellectual and literary leaders the likes of Hatta, Soekarno, Sjahrir, and Tan Malaka. It all starts with (re-)fostering a love for books!
Source: Sejarah Perbukuan: Kronik Perbukuan Indonesia Melewati Tiga Zaman (History of Books: Chronicle of Indonesian Books through Three Eras) by Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology.
