11 - Muslim Chinese in Indonesia: Between Chinese-ness and Indonesian-ness

Summary

The Chinese Indonesian Muslim community has been active again in recent years. The presence of Chinese Muslims in Indonesia is not new; there were Chinese Muslims prior to the coming of Cheng Ho (also spelled as Zheng He), a Muslim admiral during the Ming Dynasty, to Indonesia and the Chinese Muslim community was boosted in size with his visit (1405–33) but those Muslims who came then had been largely assimilated and merged into the local population. The present Chinese Muslims are relatively newer; some of them are new converts during the Suharto era and after. This chapter attempts to briefly examine the Muslim Chinese in Indonesia in terms of their origins and developments with special reference to the post-independence development. The chapter would also address the issue of Chinese-ness and Indonesian-ness among the Chinese Muslim communities.

Pre-Colonial Era

Prior to the arrival of Western colonialists, some Chinese Muslims had migrated to the Malay archipelagos. When Cheng Ho visited the areas which are now known as Indonesia, he discovered Chinese Muslim enclaves. Many argued that although Cheng Ho’s mission was not to spread Islam, but it is believed that as a Muslim, he was involved in spreading the religion. In addition to Chinese temples, he built many mosques. More researches in the spread of Islam in the Malay archipelagos during the Cheng Ho period are needed, but it is interesting to note that they are many Islamic legacies attributed to Admiral Cheng Ho. From historical records such as Lidai Bao’an (Ryukyu Kingdoms Records) and also Raffles’ History of Java, it was reported that some Chinese Muslims were engaged in spreading Islam in Sumatra and Java. The rise of Islamic kingdoms in Java has also been attributed to Chinese Muslims. Although some Muslim scholars doubted this as a historical fact, the historical legacies, including the architecture of mosques and Muslim tombs, and local legends pointed to the influence of China and the Chinese in Java. Many Chinese Muslims gradually integrated into local society and disappeared, and new Chinese migrants were mainly non-Muslims, giving rise to a different type of Chinese community. Nevertheless, there were still Chinese Muslim enclaves in Indonesia even after the coming of the Dutch.