Tuanku Imam Bonjol
(1772 –
November 6,
1864), also known as
Muhammad Syahab,
Peto Syarif, and
Malim Basa, was a hero in the
Indonesian struggle against
Dutch rule. He was born in the village of
Tanjung Bunga in the
Pasaman regency of
West Sumatra. His father's name was
Buya Nudin. He was immersed in
Islamic studies as he grew up, studying first from his father and later under various other Muslim theologians.
After founding the state of
Bonjol, Syarif became involved in the
Adat/
Paderi controversy as a Paderi leader. The Paderi movement, which has been compared to the
Wahhabi school of Islam in
Saudi Arabia, was an effort to return the Islam of the area to the purity of its roots by removing local distortions like gambling, cockfighting, the use of opium and strong drink, tobacco, and so forth. It also opposed the powerful role of women in the
matrilineal Minangkabau culture. The Adat, or traditionalist, position was that local custom that pre-dated the arrival of Islam should also be respected and followed.
Feeling their leadership position threatened, the traditionalists appealed to the Dutch for help in their struggle against the Paderis. At first, the Dutch were not able to win militarily against the Paderis because their resources were stretched thin by the
Diponegoro resistance in
Java. In 1824, the Dutch signed the
Masang Agreement ending hostilities with the state of Bonjol.
Subsequently, however, once the Diponegoro resistance was suppressed, the Dutch attacked the state of
Pandai Sikat in a renewed effort to gain control of West Sumatra. Despite valiant fighting by the Indonesians (by this time the traditionalists had realized they didn't want to be ruled by the Dutch either and had joined forces with the Paderis in their resistance), the overwhelming power of the Dutch military eventually prevailed. Syarif was captured in 1832 but escaped after three months to continue the struggle from his tiny fortress in Bonjol.
After three years of siege, the Dutch finally managed to sack Bonjol on
August 16,
1837. Through a negotiation ruse, the Dutch again captured Syarif and exiled him, first to
Cianjur in West Java, then to
Ambon, and later to
Manado in
Sulawesi. He died on
November 6,
1864, at the age of 92 and is buried in Sulawesi. The site of his grave is marked by a Minangkabau (West Sumatran) house.
See also
