The Opera Populaire

In Indonesian:
PROKLAMASI
Kami, bangsa Indonesia, dengan ini menjatakan kemerdekaan Indonesia.
Hal-hal jang mengenai pemindahan kekoeasaan d.l.l., diselenggarakan dengan tjara saksama dan dalam tempo jang sesingkat-singkatnja.
Djakarta, hari 17 boelan 8 tahoen 45
Atas nama bangsa Indonesia
Soekarno - Hatta


English translation:
PROCLAMATION
We, the Indonesian people, hereby declare the independence of Indonesia.
Matters concerning the transfer of power, etc., will be carried out in a conscientious manner and as speedily as possible.
Jakarta, 17th day of August, 45 (note: Japanese calendar year)
In the name of the Indonesian people
Soekarno - Hatta

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indonesian_Declaration_of_Independence

Soekarno proclaimed the independence of Indonesia on 17th August 1945, but it was not recognised by the Dutch. War for independence ensued until 27th December 1949, when Dutch forces fully withdrew. The above was the text for the proclamation of independence read out by Soekarno. Notice that the spelling in the Indonesian text is not the version used today. The "j" is read as "y". "tj" is to be read as "c". "oe" is to be pronounced as "u".

Coincidentally, I sat next to a bunch of Chinese youths and one Caucasian girl speaking fluent Dutch during dinner last night! Their Bahasa was stilted but their Dutch sounded like they had stepped right out of The Netherlands. While Dutch has largely fallen into disuse here in Indonesia, apparently there are still families who sent their children to study in the Netherlands. Some of the older people oso still understand Dutch. One of my aunts grew up in a family who conversed in Dutch. Sprinkles of Dutch terms can still be found in everyday Bahasa, for example, "uncle" is "om", "aunt" is "tante" and "office" is "kantor". There are oso still Dutch influences in cooking, especially the cakes here. I simply love "ontbykoek" (fragrant cinnamon cakes with nuts) and "poffertjes" (ball-shaped pancakes). Who knows, I may just consider taking up Dutch hee :)

// posted by Jenn @ 12:37 PM