Daendels Sells State Land: Asa Siasati's Break Up Study Lacks Funds In The Dutch East Indies Era

JAKARTA - It is not easy to reform a corrupt system. Herman Willem Daendels has felt it. The Governor General of the Dutch East Indies tried to carry out massive reforms. He tried bureaucratic reform, judiciary, and defense.

Efforts are not easy. Daendels needed large funds to support all his plans. He tried to think hard so that the cash flow of the Dutch East Indies (now: Indonesia) increased. However, not much succeeded. The man nicknamed Mas Galak took the quick option: to sell state land.

The practice of corruption cannot be underestimated. Nothing cannot be destroyed because of corruption. That's what happened to the Dutch trading partnership, the VOC. Officials are corrupt, not playing games. His lifestyle likes luxury and spree.

This condition makes the profits that should have entered the VOC pocket, instead into personal pockets. People even made VOC players a VOC Vergaan Onder Corruptie (binasa due to corruption). The narrative explains why the VOC fell bankrupt.

Herman Willem Daendels also tried to send the Kingdom of the Netherlands to improve the situation from 1808. He also started to make a breakthrough. Bureaucratic reform was rolled out. Regional boundaries are introduced. Personnel hierarchy is regulated. No position can be held from generation to generation for Europeans and bumiputras.

He built a modern Dutch East Indies state. Those who were corrupt were not given a place. Some were fired. Some others were returned to Europe. Daendels also tried to promote infrastructure projects.

He wants to strengthen the Dutch East Indies defense fort due to the war with Britain. Pos Anyer-Paraukan Highway was initiated. Troops are added. He also plans to move the Dutch East Indies power center from Oud Batavia (Old Batavia: Kota Tua) to other places where there is a minimal disease outbreak.

Not only that. He also wants to build a new palace: White Palace (now: AA Maramis Building Ministry of Finance). Daendels' ambition and assertiveness made him known as a figure feared by corrupt officials.

This condition made him known to the Malays as Mas Galak. The impact was not kidding. The Dutch East Indies colonial government finances were disrupted.

Even though Daendels has done a lot to organize the Javanese island military defense and increase the number of troops, the government's finances are very severe. The supply of silver currency has run out and the manufacture of copper currency with a stake in Daendels' new factory in Tawangsari, Surabaya, has led to the disappearance of good currencies from local markets.

The inflation caused causes great suffering to the local population. Especially in areas of the kingdom where Chinese owners of tax collections shifted silver currency to the coast and let currencies that have slumped in value appear again in circulation. Javanese currency traders in the city of Gede seem to be 'profit-making' also from that situation by printing a coin to be exported, "said historian Peter Carey in the book Kuasa Forecast (2011).

Daendels' big ambition was in fact not in accordance with the contents of the Dutch East Indies cash. The threat of bankruptcy is a complicated problem that Daendels must face. He also did not want to stop all kinds of megaprojects.

Daendels wants everything to keep going, even though it's difficult. Daendels also tried to think of a quick solution, such as trying to boost taxes. However, nothing really worked. Daendels' last option was trying to sell Dutch East Indies state land to the private sector.

Daendels thinks that all land on the island of Java (except for certain royal areas) belongs to the Kingdom of the Netherlands through the power of the Dutch East Indies government. This means that Daendels can sell the lands to the private sector. Many Chinese and British land owners are interested.

Daendels' offer was swept away. Many lands that were previously controlled by the colonial government of the Dutch East Indies changed their hands to unparticle land. The purchase of the land made the land owner also able to control the people living on it the natives.

Most of them are made workers. Daendels views the move to sell state land as a positive step. A step that makes Java Island open to being worked on by the private sector. This condition makes the economy continue to rotate.

In fact, that's not the case. The sale of government land became unparticle, carrying nestapa for the government and the natives. The government continues to lose money and instead buy back large numbers of parcels in the future. The bumiputras were even more stunned.

Daendels actually sells large land in the west and east of Batavia (now: Jakarta). However, the biggest transaction is the sale of all Probolinggo districts in East Java to Chinese, Han Ti Ko, for 1 million dollars.

Untunglah Daendels tidak memerintah cukup lama. Karenanya Deandels tak bisa penuh menjalankan rencana-rencananya, yang akan berdakibat sebagian penduduk Jawa menurun menjadi raji sahaya,talillable et corvable a petri (yang bisa diapati oleh penggelehannya)," ujar Bernard HM Vlekke dalam bukuNusantara(2008).