Australian historian and PhD candidate Rosalind Hewett is researching the position of Indos left in Indonesia after becoming an independent sovereign state.
In this essay she descripes the Indos’ position during the Soeharto regime (1965 – 1998). Despite a policy of assimilation ethnic groups were committed to, Indos succeeded in continuing as a particular ethnic group with specific colonial historical backgrounds. Rosalind Hewett shows the Soeharto regime was sustained by Indonesians of mixed ancestry like commander of the armed forces ABRI the catholic Indo general Benny Moerdani and secretary Joop Ave.
In modern Indonesia celebrities of popular culture with mixed ancestry are even very appreciated and beloved. May this because of their lighter skin so desired by many young Indonesians?
Read the article of Rosalind Hewett: Indos in the New Order.