Socio-Ecological Resilience and the Indonesian Peasant Movement in the Mid-Twentieth Century

Studies of the Indonesian peasant movements in the mid-twentieth century have taken a range of approaches, with scholars exploring aspects including educational programmes and agrarian research (Luthfi 2011; Leksana 2016; White 2016) as well as agrarian conflicts related to plantations (Pelzer 1982; Stoler 1985), forests (Peluso 1992) and land ownership (Huizer 1972; Mortimer 1972; Kasdi 2009). This paper takes a different approach by viewing the Indonesian peasant movement via the lens of ‘socio-ecological resilience’ (Folke et al. 2016). The paper argues the rapid growth of the peasant movement during this period can be helpfully understood through its ability to support peasant resilience in the face of rapid socio-political change on the one hand, and a wide range of ecological challenges on the other. During this period Indonesia experienced repeated changes of political regime, and an increased tendency toward the political mobilisation of society. At the same time, Indonesian peasants faced varied and serious ecological challenges ranging from floods and droughts to volcanic eruptions, pests and the productive limits of often crowded agrarian land. The paper argues the Indonesian peasant movement operated across both these dimensions, providing representation for peasants within the evolving Indonesian society, whilst also supporting peasants facing ecological challenges.