Bidding for Asia
Rebels in Paradise. By James Mossman. (Cape, 18s.) THIS book, written in the style of a reporter's notebook, is useful for anyone who needs a detailed account of the Indonesian civil war or who is anxious to understand recent Indonesian history. Mr. Mossman also returns several times to the question of the Western policy towards Communism in Asia and it is then that what he has to say acquires general interest.
The Indonesian civil war has certain parallels with the Spanish Carlist wars. In both cases local army commanders fought against a cen- tralist government for the restoration of ancient local autonomies—in the case of Indonesia, these local autonomies date from the period be- fore the Dutch. In both cases, the conservative religious forces were on the rebel side. But in Indonesia the urban 'moderates' (a name which liberals often give themselves when in political opposition) were also on the rebel side and Sukarno, with his attempts at 'guided demo- cracy' and increasingly personal leadership, was the common bogey. The Communists stand be- tween the' two forces but support Sukarno, probably, among other reasons, because it is easier to seize power if government is central- ised. Once you've got the power, you make the party popular and weaken the potential oppo- sition by granting many of the regionalist de- mands and encouraging local languages, costumes, folk dances and other harmless things.
Mr. Mossman believes that Indonesia's search for a stable form of government will be long and beset with difficulties. The power inter- regnum is still on, which began with the irruption of the Japanese into South-East Asia and their quick ejection from it. Will the Com- munists win through? Mr. Mossman has hard words for American policy in Indonesia and especially for the 'comic-opera' activities of the Central Intelligence Agency. He admires the Communists for their dedication and hard work and believes that if the West is to beat them in the cold war, it must pool its resources and fight Communism with large-scale technical and material aid, administered by an inter- national agency. `As it is,' he writes, 'the Com- munists believe that in this kind of cold war, time is on their side. In South-East Asia the West is not doing very much these days to persuade them that they are wrong.'
I believe that, on his own logic, Mr. Moss- man is actually predicting ultimate Communist victory. For if 'the West' is doing little and if all it ultimately should do is pool its resources and give aid, then we may rest assured that 'the West' will not do this, because self-interest is ultimately the only reason why any State will engage for a long time in a policy involving sacrifice and 'the West' is not a State, but a conglomeration, with no live feeling of com- mon self-interest in remotest Asia. Besides, all the gifts and education and credit in the world will not give the Indonesians or any other people what the Communists can give them into the bargain, packaged and ready for use—a sure system of political and moral authority, adapted to their historical situation, and a con- crete vision of justice. Mr. Mossman and the West assume that yellow men and black men will dance to the Western tune in exchange for an anonymously bestowed standard of living and lots of book-learning. But this assumption sins against reality by taking an excessively material- istic and intellectual view of man.
DESMOND FENNELL
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