She added that the Indonesian community played a crucial role in the event of New Caledonia.
Workers from Java got here to New Caledonia for “Koeli Ordonantie“an 1880 regulation designed to supply labour for plantations managed by the Dutch colonial government. France, which occupied New Caledonia, demanded employees for coffee plantations and nickel mines.
Labor migration continued until 1948, when the variety of employees reached 19,500. When Indonesia gained independence, a lot of them returned to their homeland. Those who remained continued to live within the territory and integrated into local communities.
To mark the anniversary, New Caledonian politicians and government officials attended a wreath-laying ceremony on the Vallon Du Gaz monument.
The Association of Indonesian Descendants in New Caledonia organised additional celebrations in Paita, 30 kilometres from Noumea, where the Indonesian diaspora lives.
“Even though most of the Indonesian descendants do not speak Indonesian, deep down they still cherish the Indonesian values passed down to them by their elders,” said Thierry Timan, chairman of the association.
The arrival of Indonesians in New Caledonia has been celebrated annually since 1996.
“We hope that young members of the diaspora will be motivated to follow the spirit of previous generations and play an active role in supporting relations between Indonesia and New Caledonia,” Indonesian Consul General in Noumea, Widyarka Ryananta, said in a press release.
According to Widyarka, there are almost 7,000 Indonesian descendants on this territory. Most of them don’t speak Indonesian, but are fluent in Javanese.
New Caledonia has a population of 268,767 people.
Source :
“Indonesians Abroad – Deep History and a View from Below” by – University of Wollongong – Research Online
Jakarta Post
people-groups.org
