Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje`s advice to the Dutch colonial administration in the Netherlands East Indies :an evaluation

Abstract

This study aims at exploring the merits and implications of Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje’s advice to the Dutch colonial administration in the Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia). According to Jan Just Witkam, many of Hurgronje’s recommendation were adopted by the Dutch colonial authorities. This study explains how Hurgronje used his knowledge of Islam, which he learned in Makkah and the Netherlands East Indies, in delivering his advice. Moreover, the European ideas of modernism, evolution, civilization, and emancipation permeated most of his advice. Findings of this study demonstrate that although Hurgronje was a scholar and a professor at Leiden University, he supported and assisted colonialism and imperialism by using his knowledge and serving as official adviser to sustain the Dutch colony in the Netherlands East Indies. His primary interest seemed to have been protecting Dutch colonial interests in the whole region. This stance can be seen through his recommendations and in the policies adopted by the Dutch colonial administration. Throughout his career, Hurgronje had tried to inhibit ‘radicalization’ of Islam (jihÉd) by limiting the role of Islam in society. In fact, he prepared “the road map” for the Netherlands East Indies to become part of the Greater Netherlands – a westernized-secular state. He could be categorized simply as a nationalist imperialist orientalist.