oa De Tweede Wereldoorlog in Indonesië als een geschiedenis van beweging en begrenzing

The Second World War in Indonesia should not be viewed as an isolated event, but in conjunction with the wider events of decolonization and the formation of independent states, and also in a wider geographic framework. This article examines the shifting patterns of migration and mobility in the period of transition from colonial rule to independence. The Second World War appears to have had a decisive effect on patterns of migration, first of all because of the unsettling effects of mobilisation and imprisonment, but also because of repercussions on longer-term patterns of mobility. In the period between the 1920s and 1960s, four major shifts can be discerned: the transformation of patterns of labour-migration; the migration crises caused by war and revolution; the exodus of ethnic minorities; and urbanization. For the first and last of these changes, the war was not the sole cause, but it was a catalyst. It becomes clear that the vicissitudes of the Dutch population cannot be separated from those of other communities in Indonesian society. This study of mobility in and out of Indonesia demonstrates the need to analyse the Second World War from a regional and global perspective.