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to fight for Indonesian Independence.   political ideology and ideals to realize              and the students of the Thawalib School   considered themselves as higher
                                   The cooperative group was represented   the Indonesian state. Some nationalists               in Padang Panjang was slow and came    because they occupied the position
                                   by modernists or reformists, where as   are Soekarno, Mohammad Hatta and                      by through reading newspapers and      second only to the Dutch. At first, local
                                   the resistant group was represented     Mohammad Yamin and socialists                         magazines that discussed political     traders and Chinese merchants were
                                   by traditionalists. The Modernists had   include Tan Malaka, Muso and Semaun.                 issues, including those around the     barely involved in conflicts, but after the
                                   mostly received their education in      Indonesian national movements divided                 Sarekat Islam (SI). The vice-president   1911 Chinese Revolution they began to
                                   schools established by the Dutch colonial   into three major groups in terms of their         of the Sarekat Islam, Abdul Muis,      limit themselves. Besides, the SDI was
                                   government as a result of the ethical   ideologies, viz. Islamist, nationalist, and           often visited his homeland to take care   also founded to protect its members
                                   policy, while those who rekindled the   socialists. 13                                        of public interests. The Communist     from the pressure of upper-class elites,
                                   spirit of resistance usually originated   According to Noer,  the spread of the               influence Datuk Batuah brought had     who could not meet the public rights of
                                                                                           14
                                   from pesantren. Most of Nawawi          Islamic reform movement that gave                     caused polemics betweenMuslim          thepeople who were often discriminated.
                                   Banten and Mahfuhz Termas’s students    birth to Muslim political movements in                scholars in Minangkabau and finally,   For example, common people were not
                                   developed traditional organizations,    Indonesia started in Minangkabau and                  in 1924, the Union of Islamic Religious   allowed to wear particular batik patterns.
                                   while Ahmad Khatib’s students tended    originated from Sheikh Ahmad Khatib’s                 Teachers agreed to reject Communism    In some regions they were not allowed
                                   to practice reformed Islam. In addition to   teaching of Islamic reformthat spread            as it was declared antagonistic to the   to travel by train and were victimized
                                                                                                                                                 15
                                   the traditionalist ‘ulama, non-cooperative   to other regions in Indonesia. while the         teachings of Islam.                    by various other humiliating forms of
                                   Muslim groups were also represented by   reform movement originally developed                 The Sarekat Islam                      treatment. Hence, the SDI turned into a
                                                                                                                                                                        bastion of struggle for indigenous traders to
                                   revolutionary young Muslims who were    in Minangkabau, Islamic political
                                   influenced by socialist ideology. 12    organizations started to appear in Java.              Muslim political activities in Indonesia   help them raise their rank in front of Chinese
                                                                                                                                                                        traders and upper-class aristocrats.
                                   In general, Islamic movements did not   The Thawalib School, for example,                     are generally seen to have been        When the SDI started not to limit its
                                                                                                                                 spearheaded by the Islamist Union
                                   promote these differences because they   shows the change of its orientation in               (Sarekat Islam, SI) which was founded   scope to unifying merchants, but began
                                   had the same goal of making Indonesia   1923 as it focussed on political affairs              in Solo on November 11, 1912 as the    to be interested in politics, it transformed
                                   independent as the result of Muslim     after a teacher named Datuk Batuah had                successor of the Islamist Trade Union   into the SI. SDI founder H. Samanhoedi,
                                   struggle. They envisioned the creation   arrived from Java bringing communist                 (Sarekat Dagang Islam, SDI). The SDI   who also became the SI’s first chairman,
                                   of an Islamic-based state. They came    influences that reflected a more radical              was founded on October 16, 1905        started to shape the organization by
                                   together to realize this Islamic ideals.   stance against the government than                 by Haji Samanhoedi and aimed at        improving its leadership, formulating the
                                   Some of their well-known leaders include   simply materialism itself. However, the            promotingthe Muslims’ economy that     basic organizational statutes, as well
                                   Achmad Dahlan, Hasjim Asj’ari, H.O.S.   political transition among the teachers               had been facing stiff competition from   as the arrangement of the relationship
                                   Tjokroaminoto, and Agus Salim. Islamic   13. Harold Crouch. “Islam and Politics in Indonesia,”   Chinese traders. It initially attracted   between thecentral organization and its
                                   political groups dealt with the nationalist   in Coral Bell, ed. Politics, Diplomacy and Islam: Four   local batik traders in Solo who felt   local branches. The basic organizational
                                   and socialist groups’ differences in    Case  Studies.  Canberra:  the  Australian  National   the Chinese humiliated them as they   statutes were formulated on November
                                                                           University, 1986, p. 15-30.
                                   12. Benda. Bulan Sabit ..., pp. 205-233.  14. Noer. Gerakan Moderen....,p. 37.                15. Noer. Gerakan Moderen...,p. 57.    11, 1911 by Raden Mas Tirtoadisurjo,



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