UGM’s Department of History held a cultural seminar entitled ‘Reclaiming Narratives of Colonial Objects: Recovering Histories and Dismantling Colonial Knowledge’ at the Soegondo Auditorium on Thursday, 9 July 2026.

This seminar brought together academics from Lombok to Amsterdam to examine the dark history of the Lombok War of 1894, during which violence and the mass looting of cultural artefacts belonging to the Mataram Kingdom took place. The discussion amongst the speakers was lively, as it brought together representatives from both sides—those from the colonised and the colonising powers.

“Don’t diversify, decolonise” was the main slogan featured at this event. The slogan emphasises that efforts to reclaim history are not merely about increasing the diversity of collections, but rather a shift in mindset from a narrative originally rooted in the colonisers’ perspective to a historical account belonging to the people themselves, as the colonised.

“We would like to express our gratitude to the University of Amsterdam, the Weltmuseum, the Ministry of Culture and the NWO for supporting this event and ensuring it ran smoothly,” said one of the history students who attended the event.

This seminar, which was open to the public, was well attended by academics, UGM and non-UGM students, and policy-makers. The high level of enthusiasm among participants demonstrated that this forum was not merely a standard academic discussion, but a concrete step towards supporting the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 on Quality Education, through the reconstruction of a more critical history curriculum. Furthermore, this event is also aligned with SDG 16 on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions through efforts at reconciliation and the upholding of historical justice regarding cultural heritage objects.

Author: Humas FIB, Zaidan Abdurrahman

Yogyakarta, April 21, 2026 — Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) inaugurated Prof. Dr. Mutiah Amini, M.Hum. as a Professor of Urban Social History at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences. The inauguration ceremony took place at the UGM Central Building. In her inaugural speech, Professor Amini sharply highlighted the gap between city comfort slogans and the reality of the residents’ social spaces.

The inaugural speech was titled “History and Citizens’ Imagination of Urban Social Space.” Professor Amini chose the word imagination as a reflection of various social phenomena in contemporary public spaces. She observed the contradiction between citizens sleeping on the streets seeking pity and the various prideful acronyms used by city governments. Slogans such as Bandung Bermartabat, Semarang Kota ATLAS, Surabaya HEBAT, and Yogyakarta Berhati Nyaman seem to imply the promise of a perfect urban space to live in.

“From this reflection, it is certainly important to question whether the abbreviations or acronyms created remain the aspiration of all city governments and their citizens today. Or conversely, are these acronyms merely a fleeting hope?” explained Professor Amini, introducing her ideas.

Professor Amini then referred to Kartini’s thoughts on comfortable urban spaces as a starting point for discussion. She explained that the idea of creating urban social spaces since the colonial era has actually brought significant impacts that are often overlooked. Society became increasingly aware of the boundaries between private and public spaces. The function of the house during modernization slowly shifted. Houses often lost their role as a place that provides comfort and a sense of belonging for families, turning simply into a physical space for temporary shelter.

Citizens’ imagination of a healthy and harmonious urban space continued to live on until the independence period. The complexity of public spaces raised various concerns regarding floods, evictions, and domestic and industrial waste issues. The middle class then used mass media to voice their resignation through opinion columns. Pleas such as “where should we turn” commonly appeared in newspapers to demand the restoration of lakes and other public spaces.

Unlike the middle class, the urban poor had their own way of realizing their collective imagination. This group tended to occupy available urban public spaces. Professor Amini cited Lefebvre’s view, which refers to this phenomenon as a space of representation. The space is brought to life through various symbols and imaginations of its users as a way to manifest the collective memory of city residents.

Historical facts show that Kartini had thought about urban humanitarian and social issues comprehensively since over a century ago. Professor Amini emphasized this as an important self-criticism for modern-era historians. Kartini paved the way for the idea that all government policy formulations must be drafted carefully and comprehensively.

Urban regional planning ultimately demands a balance between physical development and the fulfillment of basic human rights. The provision of an aesthetic, harmonious, and healthy living space is an absolute prerequisite for the sustainability of a just social system. Inclusive spatial planning policies are the main key to ensuring a city is truly capable of supporting and adequately protecting all its residents for future generations.

[Public Relations of FIB UGM, Candra Solihin]

Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) has officially inaugurated Professor Dr. Nur Aini Setiawati, M.Hum., Ph.D., as a Professor of Agrarian History at the Faculty of Cultural Sciences. The inauguration ceremony took place at the UGM Central Building on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. In her inauguration speech, she analyzed the dynamics of agrarian reform and its impact on agricultural development through a comparative study between Indonesia and South Korea.

Professor Setiawati delivered a speech titled “From Agrarian Phenomena to Agricultural Development: Indonesia and Korea.” She emphasized that land ownership and control are key factors in determining the success of a country’s development. Using a chronological and thematic historical approach, she evaluated how changes in agricultural production have been heavily influenced by land policies of the past.

“Agrarian reform plays a crucial role in agricultural development. By understanding agrarian issues, this study evaluates changes in agricultural production. The main problem to be addressed in this speech is how the impact of agrarian reform on agricultural development can be re-examined, considering that the issues of agrarian reform and agricultural development since the era of kingdoms have always been a compelling subject,” stated Professor Setiawati in her speech.

In her presentation, she explained South Korea’s success in implementing agrarian reform between 1945 and 1950. The policy successfully increased agricultural productivity by providing incentives to farmers. Consequently, the Korean agricultural sector was able to provide a stable food supply amidst waves of industrialization and urbanization. Furthermore, this reform contributed to the formation of an educated working class and encouraged the emergence of a new capitalist class.

A different situation occurred during the period of 1960 to 1984. Professor Setiawati revealed that Indonesia tended to be trapped in ideological conflicts and weak bureaucracy. National industrialization in Indonesia was not aligned with land reform. Instead, land procurement for industry actually strengthened the concentration of land control by the state and corporations. On the other hand, South Korea placed agrarian reform as the main foundation of their national industrialization.

The failure to equalize land ownership in Indonesia was also triggered by a lack of supervision and resistance from local elites. This stands in stark contrast to South Korea, which successfully distributed land evenly thanks to strong institutional support, such as cooperatives and village development programs. The impact can be seen in farmers’ welfare, where South Korea achieved rice self-sufficiency while Indonesia experienced stagnation due to structural inequality.

These findings indicate that consistent agrarian governance is the main differentiator in transforming land challenges into developmental strengths. Agrarian reform is not merely an economic policy, but a historical process that reflects power relations and the future direction of a nation.

This historical record serves as an important reflection for current policy formulation. Inclusive management of agrarian resources is an absolute prerequisite for ensuring food sovereignty and public welfare in the future. Through the continuity of appropriate policies and social legitimacy, land justice is expected to become an engine of development that provides tangible benefits to all levels of society fairly and equitably.

[Public Relations of FIB UGM, Candra Solihin]

The Faculty of Cultural Sciences at Universitas Gadjah Mada hosted the Workshop on Oral History in Southeast Asia, organized by SEASREP Foundation in collaboration with Sejarah Lisan on 9–11 February 2026 at the FIB UGM Multimedia Room. The program was designed for postgraduate students and early-career researchers in Southeast Asia to strengthen their methodological, ethical, and conceptual capacities in oral history research, amid ongoing challenges in historical production often shaped by political interests and archival limitations.

The workshop was organized in response to the growing need to document life histories, testimonies, and field narratives that are frequently absent from official records. Across Southeast Asia, state violence, the silencing of archives and media, and the revision of historical narratives have significantly influenced how history is produced and disseminated.

In recent years, the region has witnessed efforts to reassess past violence in Indonesia, the rise of ethno-nationalist interpretations in Malaysia, the dominance of single-hero narratives in Singapore, and disputes over heritage sites along the Thailand–Cambodia border. These developments place marginalized voices at risk of being erased from collective memory.

Oral history and social history offer approaches to address these gaps. However, their practice entails methodological and ethical challenges, particularly when research touches upon politically and legally sensitive issues, trauma, and unequal access to information.

The workshop was designed to address the limited formal training in oral history available in the region. Many young researchers learn the method through practice without systematic preparation in interview design, interpretation, ethics, preservation, and public engagement. Through context-based training focused on Southeast Asia, participants were encouraged to understand oral history not merely as a technical tool, but as a critical concept and practice for reexamining how history is produced.

The three-day program adopted a phased approach. The first day explored the values and methodologies of oral history, including the development of interview guidelines and preparation for fieldwork challenges. The second day focused on interpretation, transcription, preservation, and publication, complemented by panel discussions and an oral history performance session to explore alternative narrative forms. The third day highlighted participants’ research presentations and discussions on ethical issues, power relations, and researchers’ responsibilities within complex socio-political environments.

Participants were expected to have an existing or planned research project based on oral history interviews. While there were no disciplinary restrictions, participants were required to actively share their experiences and engage in collective discussions.

Through a combination of lectures, panels, workshops, performances, and student presentations, the organizers emphasized active participation and community building. The workshop aimed to establish a network of oral history researchers in Southeast Asia and Japan committed to collaboration and non-exploitative research practices.

By the end of the program, participants were expected to understand the full stages of oral history research and its potential challenges, be able to design context-sensitive and ethically grounded interviews, and gain a deeper awareness of power relations and researcher positionality in fieldwork. They were also encouraged to view oral history as a means of critically engaging with dominant state narratives and expanding historical representation.

The workshop underscores the importance of strengthening academic capacity that upholds diversity of voices and social responsibility. Building a collaborative and reflective research community represents a strategic step toward ensuring that history is written not only by those in power, but also by those who have long remained at the margins of dominant narratives.

[Public Relations of FIB UGM, Candra Solihin]

Yogyakarta, 24/4/2025 — The Faculty of Cultural Sciences at Universitas Gadjah Mada (FIB UGM) officially inaugurated Prof. Dr. Agus Suwignyo, M.A. as a Professor in the field of History. The inauguration ceremony was held at the UGM Senate Hall and attended by members of the academic community, family, and guests from various institutions.

In his inaugural speech entitled “Has Political Independence Transformed the Concepts of Colonisation and Decolonisation of Knowledge in Higher Education?”, Prof. Agus Suwignyo asserted that Indonesia’s political independence has indeed transformed these concepts, although the changes have not unfolded in a linear or progressive manner.

“Eight decades after the Proclamation of Independence, we have yet to witness a thorough and systematic decolonisation of knowledge within our universities,” said Prof. Agus. He stressed that while Indonesia is politically independent, the domain of knowledge and its production continues to be overshadowed by unresolved colonial legacies.

In his speech, Prof. Agus also drew attention to how criticisms of academic institutions have emerged as early as the era of President Soekarno. He quoted Soekarno’s statement: “I detest all this juridical formalism; I detest all this intellectualism,” which reflects the tension between politics and intellectualism. A similar tension, according to Prof. Agus, resurfaced six decades later in President Prabowo Subianto’s remark: “There are these professors who are so smart, yet they disagree. I’m puzzled. Are they clever or foolish? I don’t know. Maybe their minds are sharp, but their hearts can’t feel.”

These two statements, though separated by 64 years, reveal an enduring scepticism toward the role of intellectuals in the political power structure. Prof. Agus argued that such scepticism hampers genuine efforts at decolonising knowledge, as academic independence is often constrained by ideological interests.

The ceremony concluded with congratulations and best wishes for Prof. Agus, in the hope that he will continue to contribute to the development of critical and timely historical scholarship, especially in advancing a more substantial decolonisation of knowledge in Indonesian academia.

[Public Relation Faculty of Cultural Sciences, Bulan Churniati]