Tjhoen Tjhioe

Tjhoen Tjhioe was a Malay-language newspaper serving the Peranakan Chinese community of Surabaya in the Dutch East Indies. Its Chinese title, 春秋, is rendered as Chhun-chhiu in Pe̍h-ōe-jī and means “Spring and Autumn.” The paper’s full Malay title described it as a business newspaper containing important news for the Chinese population. Although its publication history lasted only about four years, it was regarded as one of the principal Chinese newspapers in the Indies during the 1910s, alongside better-known titles such as Sin Po and Perniagaan. The proposal for a new Peranakan Chinese newspaper in Surabaya emerged in 1913. Its intended role was explicitly communal and protective: the paper was expected to defend the interests of the Chinese population in the Indies, particularly the Chinese community of Surabaya, and to report developments that could harm that community. Henri Borel, a Dutch writer and Sinologist, was recruited as an editor after being invited to return from Europe. In the opening issue, published in early 1914, Borel paid tribute to Confucian thought and presented the newspaper as committed to solidarity among peoples. Peranakan Chinese intellectual Kwee Hing Tjiat also served as an editor from the beginning. He had previously founded Bok Tok in Surabaya, a publication later described by historian Leo Suryadinata as a predecessor or precursor to Tjhoen Tjhioe. Historian Ahmat Adam reported that the newspaper had approximately 4,000 subscribers in 1914, indicating a substantial initial reach within the Peranakan Chinese community. Editorially, Tjhoen Tjhioe defended Chinese communal identity and increasingly reflected Chinese nationalist ideas. It objected to derogatory terminology used for Chinese people by the left-wing newspaper Doenia Bergerak and advocated the more respectful term “tionghoa.” Scholars have characterized the paper’s outlook as China-oriented: it encouraged Chinese Indonesians to maintain an intellectual and political focus on China rather than identifying primarily with the Dutch colonial state. This orientation placed it within a wider and sometimes contentious press environment involving Chinese organizations, Indonesian nationalist currents, Islamic movements, colonial authorities, and debates about legal status. The paper experienced several editorial changes. Borel departed at the beginning of 1915 to become editor-in-chief of Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad. Tjan Kiem Bie appears to have led the paper in 1915 and 1916, while Tan Boen Kim was also connected with the editorial work in 1915. Tan was prosecuted under colonial press-censorship law for defaming a public official and received a fourteen-day prison sentence. Tjoe Bou San briefly served as editor in 1917. Liem Koen Hian also worked for the newspaper, although the precise dates are uncertain; during this period he criticized Dutch policy toward Chinese people in the Indies, including a proposed Dutch nationality law, while sometimes placing such criticism in other newspapers. Tjiook See Tjioe may have been the final editor, appearing in Dutch documents as editor in 1918. In 1918, the paper published an essay by Tjondrokoesoemo proposing the creation of Sarekat Tionghoa, a Chinese organization that could operate alongside Sarekat Islam. The proposal attracted attention in the Dutch-language press of the Indies and illustrates the newspaper’s role as a forum for discussion of communal organization and political representation. Tjhoen Tjhioe apparently ceased publication in 1918. The exact circumstances of its closure are not known, and no evidence in the supplied sources indicates that the title continued as a modern publication or commercial brand.

Tjhoen Tjhioe emerged from the expanding and politically active Chinese-language and Malay-language press environment of the Dutch East Indies. In 1913, advocates in Surabaya proposed establishing a new newspaper for the Peranakan Chinese community. The proposed publication was intended not merely as a commercial newspaper but as a communal institution: it would report important events, defend Chinese interests, and draw attention to policies or developments that could damage the position of Chinese people in the colony. Henri Borel, a Dutch Sinologist and writer who was then in Europe, was approached to return to the Indies and take an editorial role. The proposed compensation was reportedly negotiated before his appointment, but the available historical account does not establish the final terms as a reliable financial fact. Tjhoen Tjhioe published its first issue in early 1914. Borel’s introductory editorial invoked Confucius and emphasized the brotherhood of peoples, establishing a tone that combined Chinese intellectual reference points with a broad claim to social solidarity. Kwee Hing Tjiat was also an editor from the newspaper’s first year. His earlier Surabaya paper, Bok Tok, has been described by Leo Suryadinata as a predecessor to Tjhoen Tjhioe. The new title quickly became important within the Peranakan Chinese press. Ahmat Adam reported an initial circulation of about 4,000 subscribers in 1914, suggesting that the paper had a meaningful readership even though its total lifespan was short. The newspaper’s editorial identity became visible through its disputes with other publications. During its first year, it engaged in a war of words with Doenia Bergerak, a left-wing newspaper associated with Sarekat Islam. Tjhoen Tjhioe objected to language used by that paper for Chinese people and insisted on the term “tionghoa” as a more respectful designation. This exchange reflected broader conflicts over ethnicity, political vocabulary, communal dignity, and the relationship between Chinese Indonesians and emerging Indonesian political movements. Tjhoen Tjhioe was generally protective of the Chinese community and, over time, increasingly influenced by Chinese nationalist ideas. Leo Suryadinata characterized its orientation as “China-oriented,” meaning that it tended to direct the attention of Chinese Indonesians toward China rather than toward political identification with the Dutch East Indies. This did not make the newspaper identical to every other Chinese nationalist publication, but it placed it within the wider debate over whether Peranakan Chinese should define themselves through China, the colonial Indies, local Indonesian society, or some combination of these identities. Editorial leadership changed repeatedly. Borel left at the start of 1915 to lead Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad. Contemporary rumors claimed that he had been dismissed because he did not do enough editorial work relative to his salary, but the historical record does not conclusively establish that explanation. Tjan Kiem Bie apparently served as editor-in-chief during 1915 and 1916. Tan Boen Kim was also an editor in 1915 and became subject to a colonial press prosecution, or persdelict, after being accused of defaming a public official. He was sentenced to fourteen days in prison. The episode demonstrates the legal risks faced by journalists in the censored colonial press. Tjoe Bou San briefly held the editorial position in 1917. Liem Koen Hian also worked for Tjhoen Tjhioe, although the dates of his involvement are uncertain. He was a prominent critic of Dutch policy toward Chinese people in the Indies, especially in relation to a proposed Dutch nationality law. Some of his criticism appeared in other newspapers, including Soerabaiasche Handelsblad, rather than necessarily in Tjhoen Tjhioe itself. The final editor may have been Tjiook See Tjioe, who was identified as editor in Dutch documents from 1918. One of the newspaper’s most consequential editorial interventions came in spring 1918. It published an essay by Tjondrokoesoemo, an elite Javanese writer and editor who had worked with several Chinese newspapers. The essay proposed founding Sarekat Tionghoa, a Chinese organization that would coexist with Sarekat Islam, the major Muslim Indonesian organization. The proposal was discussed more broadly in the Dutch-language press and shows that Tjhoen Tjhioe served as a platform for debates about communal organization and political representation beyond the Peranakan Chinese community alone. The newspaper probably ceased publication in 1918. The Cornell University library catalogue is cited for this conclusion, but the exact date and reason for the closure remain unclear. There is no supplied evidence of a successor company, modern revival, or continuing commercial brand. Its historical significance rests instead on its role as an influential Surabaya newspaper that recorded and shaped debates about Chinese identity, colonial policy, political organization, language, and the developing public sphere of the Dutch East Indies.

1. 1918Sarekat Tionghoa proposal is published

   The paper printed Tjondrokoesoemo’s proposal for a Chinese organization operating alongside Sarekat Islam.

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2. 1918Publication apparently ends

   The newspaper is believed to have ceased publication, although the circumstances of its closure are unknown.

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3. 1917Tjoe Bou San serves briefly as editor

   Tjoe Bou San held the editorial position for a short period.

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4. 1915Henri Borel departs

   Borel left Tjhoen Tjhioe and became editor-in-chief of Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad.

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5. 1914First issue published

   Tjhoen Tjhioe began publication in Surabaya and established itself as a major Chinese newspaper in the Dutch East Indies.

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6. 1914Reported circulation reaches approximately 4,000 subscribers

   Historian Ahmat Adam reported an initial circulation of about 4,000 subscribers, mainly among the Peranakan Chinese community.

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7. 1913Proposal for a new Surabaya newspaper

   Plans were developed for a Malay-language newspaper intended to defend the Peranakan Chinese community and report important news affecting Chinese people in the Indies.

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A community-oriented Malay-language newspaper for the Peranakan Chinese population of Surabaya, combining business reporting, important current affairs, communal advocacy, and increasingly China-oriented Chinese nationalist commentary.

• Tjhoen TjhioeMalay-language Peranakan Chinese newspaper1914

  The newspaper’s principal and apparently only publication was a Malay-language title aimed mainly at the Peranakan Chinese population of Surabaya. It combined business information, important current affairs, community advocacy, political commentary, and debate over Chinese identity and colonial policy. The paper was published from approximately 1914 until 1918.

• 1914Adopts a community-defense editorial missionStrategy

  The newspaper was established amid concern about issues affecting Chinese people in the Dutch East Indies, particularly the Peranakan Chinese community of Surabaya.

  What changed. Tjhoen Tjhioe positioned itself as a Malay-language business and news paper that would defend the Chinese community and publicize developments considered harmful to its interests.

  Aftermath. The mission helped distinguish the paper within the Indies press and supported its reported early readership among Peranakan Chinese subscribers.

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• 1914Takes a China-oriented editorial directionStrategy

  The paper operated during a period of debate over whether Chinese Indonesians should orient themselves toward China, the Dutch colonial state, or local Indonesian political movements.

  What changed. It strongly defended Chinese communal identity and increasingly reflected Chinese nationalist ideas, including a preference for respectful Chinese communal terminology.

  Aftermath. Historians later characterized the newspaper as China-oriented, and it became involved in public arguments with other political and community newspapers.

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• 1918Tjhoen Tjhioe publishes Sarekat Tionghoa proposal

  An essay by Tjondrokoesoemo proposed forming Sarekat Tionghoa, a Chinese organization intended to exist alongside Sarekat Islam. The article was subsequently discussed in the Dutch-language press of the Indies.

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• 1918Tjhoen Tjhioe ceases publication

  The newspaper apparently ended publication in 1918. The precise date and circumstances of its closure are not established in the supplied reference material.

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• 1915Henri Borel leaves the newspaper

  Borel departed Tjhoen Tjhioe to become editor-in-chief of Bataviaasch Nieuwsblad. Other newspapers circulated claims that he had been dismissed, but the circumstances remain disputed.

  Leadership change
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• 1915Tan Boen Kim prosecuted under colonial press law

  Tan Boen Kim, associated with the newspaper’s editorial work, was charged under the colonial press-censorship regime for defaming a public official and received a fourteen-day prison sentence.

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• 1914Tjhoen Tjhioe begins publication in Surabaya

  The new Malay-language newspaper launched to serve and defend the Peranakan Chinese community in Surabaya and the wider Dutch East Indies.

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• 1914Tjhoen Tjhioe disputes terminology used by Doenia Bergerak

  The newspaper entered a public exchange with Doenia Bergerak over language used to describe Chinese people, advocating the term “tionghoa” over terms it considered derogatory.

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1. Tjhoen Tjhioe