INDONESIANS CHALLENGING WHITE AUSTRALIA

Abstract

Between the 1870s and the 1950s the north Australian pearl-shell industry relied on the labour of thousands of Indonesians who were employed as divers and crew on pearling luggers. While these men were referred to as Malays or Koepangers they were drawn from many different locations in eastern Indonesia, including Nusa Tenggara Timur, Maluku and southern Sulawesi. As indentured labourers, they were supposed to be temporary residents in Australia. Their migration was permitted as a rare exemption from the White Australia policy, based on the presumption that as maritime workers they would spend most of their time in the waters that connected Australia and the Dutch East Indies. During the limited time they spent in Australian ports they were to be strictly monitored. Despite these intended restrictions, a number of Indonesians were able to build lives in Australia by renewing their contracts for a period of 20 years or more. By the late 1950s those that remained successfully lobbied to be granted Australian citizenship. The pearl-shell industry, though notorious for its exploitation of labour, was responsible for developing and maintaining a long-term connection between eastern Indonesia and Australia and challenging the isolationism of White Australia.

Notes

¹ In reports, indentured labourers were referred to as ‘indents’.

² Australian Town and Country Journal, New Guinea, 23 February 1878, p.30.

³ Courier (Brisbane), Colonial intelligence, Western Australia, 17 April 1862, p.4. This newspaper became the Brisbane Courier after 1864.

⁴ Northern Territory Times and Gazette, Labor for North Australia, 21 November 1873, p.3.

⁵Note that before 1966, Australian currency was based on the British sterling system.

⁷Thanks to Adrian Vickers and Emilie Wellfelt for passing on this source from Hans Hägerdal. Mailrapport 1873: 566 (31 July 1873) Resident of Kupang, J.K. de Wit, National Archives, The Hague.

⁶See see Martínez & Vickers's editorial in this issue.

⁸ Brisbane Courier, Mutiny and murder on board the schooner Gift, 18 February 1873, p.2.

⁹ West Australian, Alien Immigration Restriction Act, 25 June 1907, p.7.

¹⁰See see Martínez & Vickers's editorial in this issue.

¹¹ Queenslander, Javanese labour, 29 June 1889, p.1235

¹² Inquirer & Commercial News, News from the North-West, 22 August 1889, p.5.

¹³ Western Mail, Pearl fishing, 30 August 1902, p.19.

¹⁴ Advertiser, The pearling industry, 31 January 1903, p.7

¹⁵ Northern Territory Times and Gazette, Pearling crews, 20 March 1908, p.3.

¹⁶ Sydney Morning Herald, Java-Australia line, 1 October 1908.

¹⁷ Sydney Morning Herald, Island mail steamers, 20 January 1904, p.10.

¹⁸ Register, Pearl shelling in Queensland, 9 December 1913, p.6; West Australian, Pearling and Asiatics, 16 September 1913, p.6.

¹⁹ Sydney Morning Herald, White divers at Broome, 9 July 1912, p.8.

²⁰ Sunday Times, The pearler and the Asiatic,15 December 1912.

²¹For privacy reasons I have not provided the file references here so as not to reveal the names of those involved in police proceedings.

²² Advertiser (Adelaide), 1912. Wages of divers. 30 September 1912. p.10

²³ Nor'West Echo, Pearling industry, 11 July 1914.

²⁴ Nor'West Echo, Pearling industry Malay divers, 4 April 1914.

²⁵See also Pearling Conditions, A1/15 1914/12612, National Archives of Australia (NAA), Canberra.

²⁶Crown Solicitor, Opinion, to Secretary, Attorney-General's Department, 1 March 1916, ‘Koepang Pearling Indents’, A1 1916/10463, NAA, Canberra.

²⁷NAWU, Constitution and General Rules, Rule 6, Mitchell Library, NSW.

²⁸ Northern Standard 1930. N.A.W.U. Annual General Meeting, 2 September, p.2.

²⁹Customs and Excise Office, Darwin to Department of Home Affairs, 26 March 1929, A1/15 29/1132, NAA Canberra.

³⁰ Northern Standard, Profits big but wages and conditions poor in perilous pearling industry, 13 August 1948, p.3.

³² West Australian, Broome or deportation for eight Darwin pearlers, 13 December 1948, p.6.

³¹ Northern Standard, Indentured labor face deportation after 27 years, 10 December 1948, p.1.

³³ Northern Standard, Second diving fatality in a week, 6 August 1948, p.5.

³⁴ Northern Standard, Death of pearler, 14 October 1949, p.12.

³⁵ Northern Standard, 13 August 1948, p.3

³⁶ Northern Standard, Ten men lost in gale at sea, 10 December 1948, p.3.

³⁷ Northern Standard 1950. Pearling industry may take a dive, 13 January, p.1.

³⁸A452 150/77 Part 2, Re-establishment, NAA, Canberra.

³⁹Memo, Department of Immigration, ‘Pearling indents – question of permitting them to leave their base during lay-up season’, 1 December 1952, Indonesians Engaged in Pearling Industry, A6980 T1, S250243, NAA, Canberra.

⁴⁰Visit of Mr Hamzah to Broome and Darwin, A452 53/598, NAA, Canberra.

⁴¹P.H. Cook, Secretary of the Department of Labour and National Service to Secretary, Department of Immigration, 19 May 1970, Pearling Industry – employment conditions – Part 3, A446 1969/72528, NAA Canberra.

⁴²Confidential submission to Cabinet, Australian Pearling Industry, G. McLeay, Acting Minister for Commerce and Agriculture, 26 November 1954, A6980 S250205, NAA, Canberra.

⁴³Record of conversation, Dr Tamzil, Indonesian Ambassador with J.P. Quinn, Acting Secretary, Department of External Affairs, 28 February 1955, A609 520/1/32, NAA, Canberra.

⁴⁴Administrator, F.S. Wise to Secretary, Department of Territories, 4 April 1955, Re-establishment of pearling industry – Northern Territory, A452 1950/77 PART 3, NAA, Canberra.

⁴⁵Salawatoes, Lamadoes, K331 1957/Salawatoes L, Barcode 3267922, NAA, Perth.

⁴⁶P.N. Hutton, First Secretary Australian Embassy Djakarta to Secretary, Department of External Affairs, 12 August 1960, PP578/1, 1969/715, NAA, Perth.

⁴⁷Present Structure of the Industry, December 1970, Pearling industry – employment conditions – Part 3, A446 1969/72528 NAA, Canberra.

⁴⁸Collins to Courtice, 26 March 1950, J25 1958/850, NAA, Brisbane.

⁴⁹P. Kersley to Commonwealth Migration Officer, J25 1958/850, NAA, Brisbane.

⁵⁰Nulty to Director of Native Affairs, 27 June 1961, J25 1959/641, NAA, Brisbane.

⁵¹Herwawa, Albert, Service No. Q116089, B884 Q116089, NAA, Canberra.

⁵²Radke, 10 April 1961, J25 1959/641, NAA, Brisbane.

⁵⁴Elizabeth Marshall, East-West Committee, 5 September 1960, A516 NE44, NAA, Darwin.

⁵³L. Liveris to Regional Director, ASIO, 26 May 1960, A516 NE44, NAA, Darwin.

⁵⁵Application for Naturalization, A516 NE44, NAA, Darwin.

⁵⁶LEBA Taba – Nationality: Indonesian – Arrived Broome per Centaur 1924, K1331, 1964/1965/LEBA T, NAA, Perth.

⁵⁷Bin Adam, E37/86 1966/871, NAA, Darwin.

⁵⁸Bodah Salem – Indonesian, E37 1966/996, NAA, Darwin.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Julia Martínez

Thank you to the anonymous readers for their helpful suggestions. This research was supported by funding from an Australian Research Council Discovery Project (DP0771117 Martínez & Vickers).