Phoa Liong Gie Sia (: born 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 ...

on June 4, 1905 – died on January 14, 1983, in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

) was an Indonesian-born Swiss jurist, politician and newspaper owner of the late colonial era in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

Background and education

He was born in 1905 into a prominent family of Peranakan Chinese roots, part of the ''

Cabang Atas The Cabang Atas (''Van Ophuijsen Spelling System'': Tjabang Atas)—literally 'upper branch' in Indonesian language, Indonesian—was the traditional Chinese establishment or gentry of Dutch East Indies, colonial Indonesia. They were the families ...

'' or the Chinese gentry of colonial Indonesia. His great-grandfather, Phoa Tjeng Tjoan, served as ''Kapitein der Chinezen'' of Buitenzorg (now

Bogor Bogor City (), or Bogor (, ), is a landlocked city in the West Java, Indonesia. Located around south of the national capital of Jakarta, Bogor is the 6th largest city in the Jakarta metropolitan area and the 14th overall nationwide.

) from 1866 until 1878. This was a post in the colonial civil administration with political and legal jurisdiction over the local Chinese community. Phoa was styled 'Sia' from birth as the descendant of a Chinese officer. Phoa was also a great-nephew of the prominent community leader and landlord, Phoa Keng Hek ''Sia''. The younger Phoa was educated at the ''Europeesche Lagere School'' (European lower school) in Garut, and at the ''

Hogere Burgerschool The ''Hogere Burgerschool'' (''HBS'') (Dutch: Higher Civic School) was a secondary school type that existed between 1863 and 1974 in the Netherlands and the Dutch Empire. These schools, with a five- or sometimes six-year program, continued in 1 ...

'' (higher civic school) in Batavia. Both institutions admitted only the children of elite Europeans and a small number of select non-Europeans. Phoa subsequently studied at the ''Rechtshoogeschool'' (law school) in Batavia before continuing his education at

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...

in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. He graduated as a ''Meester in de rechten'' (‘Master of Laws’) in 1925.

Legal and political career

Upon returning to Bandung in 1927, Phoa joined the legal practice of the leading Dutch lawyer C. W. Wormser. A year later in 1928, Phoa moved to Batavia in order to open his own law firm. Following in the footsteps of his great-grandfather and great-uncle, Phoa also went into politics. He was a vocal leader of the younger faction of Chung Hwa Hui (CHH), a centre-right political party seen by many as a mouthpiece of the Chinese establishment in colonial Indonesia. Phoa came into conflict with some of the policies of the older party leadership, represented by the senior parliamentarians H. H. Kan and Loa Sek Hie. Phoa resented his party leaders’ pro-Dutch sympathies, and advocated Chinese neutrality in the Indonesian struggle for independence. Phoa even indicated his willingness to support

Indonesian nationalism Indonesian nationalism is an ideology that arose during the Dutch colonial empire, Dutch colonial era in the Dutch East Indies which called for the colony's independence and unification as an independent and sovereign nation. This period of nat ...

in the right set of circumstances. Following an open conflict in 1934 with H. H. Kan, over the latter's supposed dominance over CHH, Phoa resigned his membership of the party. He maintained, however, his political involvement. On May 8, 1939, Phoa was appointed by the Dutch authorities to the ‘Volksraad’ (the colonial parliament of Indonesia), and took his seat as an independent member. After the

Second World War 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 ...

, between 1946 and 1948, Phoa acted as a legal advisor and delegate of the

at the Economic and Social Council of the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

Newspaper proprietor

Around the time of his move to Batavia in 1928, Phoa also became active in the burgeoning news media and public discourse of colonial Indonesia. In 1930, he acquired a daily newspaper, Perniagaan, whose name he changed to ''Siang Po''. This was the beginning of Siang Po Printing Press, which would acquire or create more publications in due course. A year later, in 1931, Phoa's company bought another daily, ''Panorama'', which had been founded by the writer and journalist Kwee Tek Hoay. After Phoa resigned from the CHH in 1934, his newspapers assumed an increasingly sympathetic tone towards the Indonesian nationalist movement. The editorial board of ''Panorama'' included such leading nationalists as Sanusi Pane,

Amir Sjarifuddin Amir Sjarifuddin Harahap ( EVO: Amir Sjarifoeddin Harahap; 27 April 1907 – 19 December 1948) was an Indonesian politician and journalist who served as the second prime minister of Indonesia from 1947 until 1948. A major leader of the lef ...

and

Mohammad Yamin Muhammad Yamin (24 August 1903 – 17 October 1962) was an Indonesian poet, politician, historian and national hero who played a key role in the writing of the draft preamble to the 1945 constitution. Early life and education Yamin was born ...

, with the prominent journalist,

Liem Koen Hian Liem Koen Hian (林群賢) (3 November 1897 – 4 November 1952) was an Indonesian journalist and politician. He was born in Banjarmasin, the son of a local Peranakan-Hakka Chinese business owner, Liem Ke An. He attended the Hollands-Chineesche ...

, as chief editor. Liem, as well as Saeroen, also contributed to ''Siang Po''. In mid-1936, Liem, Pane, Sjarifuddin and Yamin founded yet another daily, ''Kebangoenan'', which Siang Po Printing Press likewise printed. Phoa was also the owner of two further publications, the magazines ''Si Pao'' and ''Kong Hwa Po'', the last of which was similarly under Liem's editorial oversight.

Personal life

Phoa was married Laura Charlotte Ongkiehong, daughter of the Ambon-based newspaper owner and magnate, Ong Kie Hong, and granddaughter of Njio Tek Liem, ''Luitenant der Chinezen'' of Ambon ('Lieutenant of the Chinese'). Together with his family, Phoa later moved to

, where he spent the remainder of his life.

Major works

*''De rechtstoestand der Chineezen in Indonesië'' (in Dutch) nglish: 'The Legal Position of the Chinese in Indonesia' Chung Hwa Hui Tsa Chih, jaargang V, October–November (1926): 56-60. *''Aliran-Aliran dalam Siahwee Tionghoa (Lezing dari Mr. Phoa Liong Gie dalem Pauze dari Soiree Musicale Chung Hwa Hui Afd. Batavia'' (in Malay) nglish: 'Various Streams within the Chinese Community (Speech by Mr. Phoa Liong Gie during the Interval of a Musical Soiree of Chung Hua Hui, Batavia Branch' Batavia: Drukkerij Siang Po (1932): no page number. *''De Economische Positie der Chineezen in Nederlandsch-Indië'' (In Dutch) nglish: 'The changing economic position of the Chinese in Netherlands India' Koloniale Studiën 5:6 (1936): 97–119.

References