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Explainer | Explained: Indonesia’s democratic transition and the role of political Islam
- Indonesia was a Dutch colony from the early 19th century until it was occupied by the Japanese from 1942-45
- In recent times, it has confronted home-grown extremism and increasingly potent political Islam
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Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, home to about one in eight of the world’s Muslims. Spanning 17,508 islands, it is the world’s fourth most populous country overall, with about 264 million people. It is Southeast Asia’s largest economy and the world’s 10th-largest economy in terms of purchasing power parity.
Indonesia was a Dutch colony from the early 19th century until it was occupied by the Japanese from 1942-45. Indonesia declared independence after Japan’s surrender ended the second world war. However, the Netherlands did not cede sovereignty to Indonesia until 1949.
Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 and annexed the former Portuguese colony in 1976. Some 200,000 East Timorese were killed or died of famine during the Indonesian occupation, according to multiple reports. A United Nations-supervised independence referendum was held in 1999 and East Timor became independent in 2002.
More than 483 languages and dialects are spoken in Indonesia, representing more than 350 ethnic groups that inhabit the archipelago.
Located in the Pacific “ring of fire”, Indonesia is prone to frequent earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.
The transition to democracy
General Suharto ruled the archipelago for 32 years (1966-98) after wresting power from Sukarno, Indonesia’s independence leader and first president.
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