Oene Djoenaidi (3 March 1895 – 6 June 1966), better known in Indonesia as R.H.O. Djoenaidi, was an Indonesian businessman. He sponsored the ''

Pemandangan ''Pemandangan'' () was a daily newspaper published in the Dutch East Indies (and later Indonesia) between 1933 and 1958. It was one of the few local newspapers which was initially allowed to operate during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East ...

'' newspaper and was active in early Indonesian press.

Early life

Djoenaidi was born on 3 March 1895. As a teenager, he studied

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

, during which he became familiar with the

Sarekat Islam Sarekat Islam or Syarikat Islam ( 'Islamic Association' or 'Islamic Union'; SI) was an Indonesian socio-political organization founded at the beginning of the 20th century during the Dutch colonial era. Initially, SI served as a cooperative of ...

(SI) and its leaders in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. By the age of 18, he had returned to Indonesia, to his home in

Tasikmalaya Tasikmalaya (also known as Tasik) is a landlocked city in West Java, Indonesia. The city is sometimes dubbed ''kota santri'' (city of religious learners) or "the City of a Thousand Pesantrens" for its abundance of Islamic boarding schools. Locat ...

, and joined the SI.

Career

Once he returned, Djoenaidi worked to manage his father's coconut plantation, and traded in textiles around

West Java West Java (, ) is an Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten and the country's capital region of Jakarta to t ...

. He expanded the agricultural business to

lemongrass ''Cymbopogon'', also known as lemongrass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, oily heads, Cochin grass, Malabar grass, citronella grass or fever grass, is a genus of Asian, African, Australian, and tropical island plants in the grass family. Some ...

and rubber, and became known with the moniker "Lemongrass King". He also started a publisher, Galunggung, in

Bandung Bandung is the capital city of the West Java province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, the city is the List of Indonesian cities by population, fourth-most populous city and fourth largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta, Surabay ...

. In 1933, during a business trip to Batavia, he met journalist

Saeroen Saeroen (EYD, Perfected Spelling: Saerun; fl. 1920s–1962) was an Indonesian journalist and screenwriter. Born in Yogyakarta, he became a journalist after a time working at a railway station. By the mid-1930s he had established the daily ''Pem ...

who stayed in a hostel run by Djoenaidi's son, and he agreed to invest in Saeroen's newspaper ''

''. Within ''Pemandangan'', Djoenaidi invested a significant proportion of his personal wealth, appointed

Mohammad Tabrani Mohammad Tabrani Soerjowitjirto (10 October 1904 – 12 January 1984) was an Indonesian journalist and politician. He originated from the island of Madura and received journalistic education in Europe. In his early journalistic career, Tabrani wa ...

as chief editor when Saeroen left, and was noted to be generous in compensation to writers and employees. In 1940 Djoenaidi additionally raised funds through ''Pemandangan'' to repatriate Indonesians living in Mecca stranded by transport restrictions due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During the

Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies The Empire of Japan occupied the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during World War II from March 1942 until after the end of the war in September 1945. In May 1940, Germany German invasion of the Netherlands, occupied the Netherlands, and ma ...

, Djoenaidi was made deputy chief editor of the Japan-backed ''

Asia Raya ''Asia Raya'' (also spelled ''Asia-Raja''; 'Grand Asia') was a newspaper published in the Dutch East Indies (modern day Indonesia) during the Japanese occupation. Background When the Japanese Empire occupied the Dutch East Indies in 1942, they ...

'' newspaper. Following Indonesian independence, Djoenaidi along with others such as

Adam Malik Adam Malik Batubara (22 July 1917 – 5 September 1984) was an Indonesians, Indonesian politician, diplomat, and journalist, who served as the third vice president of Indonesia from 1978 until 1983, under President Suharto. Previously, he serv ...

and Sumanang co-founded the National Press Company (''Badan Usaha Penerbitan Nasional''), and he became a member of its

board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

. Djoenaidi had significant connections with republican leaders during the

Indonesian National Revolution The Indonesian National Revolution (), also known as the Indonesian War of Independence (, ), was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during A ...

, at one point being arrested by the Dutch due to "connection with terrorist activities". He died on 6 June 1966 in his home in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

, having been treated for cancer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Djoenaidi, Oene 1895 births 1966 deaths 20th-century Indonesian businesspeople Indonesian collaborators with Imperial Japan Indonesian Muslims Pemandangan people People from Tasikmalaya