Revisiting the Bandung Conference: berbeda sejak dalam pikiran

ABSTRACT: The 60th anniversary of the Bandung Conference seems to be a timely moment to re-evaluate how we frame the Bandung Conference. Glorified as the momentous event of forging Asian-African solidarity to fight colonialism and imperialism, scholars and intellectuals oftentimes look upon the Conference for an alternative framework on solidarity. Although not beyond criticism, the Bandung Spirit remains a sought-after awareness that connects the common historical experience of colonialism and pushes forward the process of decolonization. Much needed, however, is the contextualization of Bandung Conference to Indonesia's state of politics and social affairs. It is imperative that we begin to see the Bandung Conference not as a solitary event in the historiography of Indonesia, but as an event within the trajectory of the newly emerging state. In that sense, we have to reframe the Bandung Conference as dependent upon other events within both the chronological and sporadic history that characterizes the post-independence struggle in Indonesia.