Editing Chinese Indonesians (section)

===Chinese in the archipelago under Dutch colonial rule to 1900===

[[File:Een Chinese familie 16. Midden Bali (titel op object), RP-F-2001-17-33.jpg|thumb|[[Balinese Chinese|Chinese family in Bali]] 1900s]]

When the VOC was nationalized on 31 December 1799, many freedoms the Chinese experienced under the corporation were eliminated by the Dutch government. Among them was the Chinese monopoly on the salt trade which had been granted by the VOC administration.{{sfn|Phoa|1992|p=11}} An 1816 regulation introduced a requirement for the indigenous population and Chinese traveling within the territory to obtain a travel permit. Those who did not carry a permit faced arrest by security officers. The governor-general also introduced a resolution in 1825 which forbade foreign Asians in Java, such as [[Ethnic Malays|Malays]], [[Bugis|Buginese]] and Chinese, from living within the same neighborhood as the native population.{{sfn|Phoa|1992|p=12}} Following the costly [[Java War]] (1825–1830) the Dutch introduced a new agrarian and cultivation system that required farmers to "yield up a portion of their fields and cultivate crops suitable for the European market". Compulsory cultivation restored the economy of the colony, but ended the system of revenue farms established under the VOC.{{sfn|Phoa|1992|p=13}}

[[File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Onderwijs op Java TMnr 10000809.jpg|thumb|alt=An adult man speaks to several dozen children who are seated on school benches. Behind them on the wall are hanging posters containing various diagrams.|The first Dutch Chinese Schools were established in 1892 following a split in curriculum from the native population.]]

[[File:Een optocht tijdens traditioneel Chinees feest Cap Go Meh. Mannen, vrouwen en ki, Bestanddeelnr 491-6-5.jpg|thumb|left|[[Lantern Festival|Cap Go Meh]] celebration in [[Padang]], [[West Sumatra]], circa 1948]]

The Chinese were perceived as temporary residents and encountered difficulties in obtaining land rights. Europeans were prioritized in the choice of plantation areas, while colonial officials believed the remaining plots must be protected and preserved for the indigenous population. Short-term and renewable leases of varying lengths{{efn|According to {{harvtxt|Heidhues|2001|p=179}}, the length of the leases depended on the location. Bangka had 25-year leases, while several areas offered 50-year leases.}} were later introduced as a temporary measure, but many Chinese remained on these lands upon expiration of their contracts and became squatters.{{sfn|Heidhues|2001|p=179}} At the beginning of the 20th century, the colonial government began to implement the "[[Dutch Ethical Policy|Ethical Policy]]" to protect the indigenous population, casting the Chinese as the "foremost enemy of the natives". Under the new policy, the administration increased restrictions on Chinese economic activities, which they believed exploited the native population.{{sfn|Phoa|1992|p=14}}

Powerful Chinese families were described as the [[Cabang Atas|''cabang atas'']] (lit., upper branch) of colonial society, forming influential bureaucratic and business dynasties, such as the [[Kwee family of Ciledug]] and the [[Tan family of Cirebon]].

In western [[Borneo]], the Chinese established their first major mining settlement in 1760. Ousting Dutch settlers and the local Malay princes, they joined into a new republic known as [[Lanfang Republic|Lanfang]], led by ethnic Hakka, [[Luo Fangbo|Lo Fang Pak]]. By 1819, they came into conflict with the new Dutch government and were seen as incompatible with its objectives, yet indispensable for the development of the region.{{sfn|Phoa|1992|p=16}} The [[Bangka–Belitung Islands]] also became examples of major settlements in rural areas. In 1851, 28 Chinese were recorded on the islands and by 1915, the population had risen to nearly 40,000 and fishing and tobacco industries had developed. [[Coolie]]s brought into the region after the end of the 19th century were mostly hired from the [[Straits Settlements]] owing to recruiting obstacles that existed in China.{{sfn|Phoa|1992|pp=17–18}}

Lowland Chinese in 1904 sold Beaumont and Winchester rifles in Sumatra to Bataks who were attacking and fighting the Dutch.<ref>{{cite book |last=Tagliacozzo |first=Eric |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AMhAb3XGmH4C&dq=%22Sumatra+local+chiefs+were+still+procuring%22&pg=PA276 |title=Secret Trades, Porous Borders: Smuggling and States Along a Southeast Asian Frontier, 1865-1915 |date=2008 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0300128123 |edition=illustrated |series=Yale Historical Publications Series |location= |page=276 |author-link=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scribd.com/document/373549060/Document|title=Document &#124; PDF &#124; Smuggling &#124; Borneo|website=Scribd}}</ref>