The Shared Portuguese heritage of Indonesia, Goa and Republic of Sao Tome and Principe

Several thousand miles, many water bodies and continents, Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of São Tome and Principe (island nation off the Gulf of Guinea, West Africa) and the Indian State of Goa, have a shared past. All three were Portuguese colonies

All were Portuguese colonies at almost the same time in history (Saotome:1470, Parts of Indonesia:1511 and Goa:1511). They became independent around the same time (Sao Tome in 1975, East Timor in 1975 and Goa in 1961).

(Saotome cocoa factory Raghu Gururaj)

The Portuguese were successful in Asia because they encountered little resistance. With their superior naval strength, they operated out of a network of fortified trading ports from Maluku to Malaka, Macau, Goa, the Persian Gulf, Mozambique, Angola and Sao Tome.

An interesting fact is that while the Portuguese ruled Goa, their country itself was ruled by Spain from the late 16th century for a period of 60 years !

Painful Past

The Portuguese entered Indonesia in 1511 and became the first Europeans to do so.  They  arrived in Timor sometime between 1512 and 1522 and officially annexed the area as a Portuguese territory with the appointment of a Governor for Timor and Solor in 1702. 

They stayed on till the 1800s, when the Dutch ousted them. But they held on to East Timor until the latter declared freedom from Portuguese rule in 1975, thereby giving the Portuguese a 450 year reign in Indonesia. Indonesia suffered serious disruption of trading routes and dislocation of commercial activities during Portuguese reign.

Sao Tome became a hoarding place for slave trade during Portuguese reign. It suffered from social unrest leading to economic instability throughout the 19th and 20th centuries.

Despite abolition of slavery in the Portuguese colonies in 1876, Sao Tome continued to be subjected to forced paid labour, which led to deep dissatisfaction with the working conditions. The social upheaval caused by the native Forros, heralded the freedom struggle for Sao Tome in 1975.

Goa also shared a painful past as it underwent a religious conversion programme by the colonizers on the native Goan population. This led to widespread misery, exploitation, deaths and destruction. Vasco Da Gama reached Calicut (modern day Kozhikode) on the Malabar coast of India in 1498. Goa was taken over in 1511. The Portuguese rule in Goa lasted 450 years, until they were driven away by the Indian army in 1961.

Why did the Portuguese colonize ?

On their Asian voyage, it was the search for spices and to spread the ideas of Christianity that were the guiding factors for Portuguese invasions in Goa and East Indies. 

In Indonesia, the Portuguese were enamoured by the exotic spices of the Maluku Islands, also known as the "Spice Islands". Mostly it was nutmeg and cloves. As the first Europeans to arrive in the East Indies, they were keen to dominate the sources of spices by curtailing the network of Muslim traders. The Portuguese were initially not successful as they got entangled in hostilities among indigenous kingdoms on Java. But they soon learned to work with the local traders and became successful in Moluccas, Ternate, Ambon, and Solor.

Merle Severy wrote in National Geographic: "After the discoverers became conquerors, they learned it was more profitable to regulate Muslim trade and tax it. The Portuguese took their biggest profit from inter-Asian trade—selling Arabia's stallions to warring Indian princes, carrying cotton textiles around the Bay of Bengal and Timor's sandalwood to China, and bartering China's silk for Japan's silver."

In the case of Goa, when Vasco da Gama discovered a direct sea route from Europe to Asia in 1497, it enabled the Portuguese to bypass the Middle East land and sea trade routes, which were controlled by Islamic states. Goa was already the heart of the Portuguese Empire in the East with a huge spice trade. Within Asia, spices and other goods were exchanged for gold, silver, textiles and rice. Portuguese ships plied their trade goods between Goa and Lisbon, Goa and Macao and Goa and Nagasaki.

The Portuguese simply chanced upon the inhabited islands of SaoTome and Principe in 1470. The Portuguese had already colonized Madeira (1420), the Azores (1439), and Cape Verde (1462) in the Atlantic off the coast of West Africa. These islands were very useful strategic points for Portuguese ships that criss-crossed their empire. But they were keen for a base even closer to the lucrative trade markets in the southern part of West Africa. The two uninhabited islands of São Tomé and Principe became ideal candidates for such a base. After settlements, the Portuguese indulged in slave trade and human exploitation for running the sugar and cacao plantations in Sao Tome and Principe.

But the Portuguese were not just motivated by trade and spread of Christian values. They were conscious of their strong military strength, highly skilled exploratory nature and supreme maritime capabilities. These advantages enabled them to build many trading posts across the globe. This realization later led them to control trading routes, build new political structures and establish empires.

Portugal's Legacy

Though the number of years of Portuguese reign in all the three places has been more or less the same, its impact on each of them has been varied.

Portuguese influence has been most pronounced in the islands of Sao Tome and Principe even today. The whole of SaoTome speaks Portuguese and 95% of the population is Christian. Architecture is predominantly Portuguese. One can find the city dotted with villas of colonial origin dotting the city coastline. The economy and society of SaoTome is even today closely intertwined with Portugal. Santomeans study and seek medical treatment in Portugal.

(Saotome: Raghu Gururaj)

Goa has certainly been influenced by Portuguese culture –art, architecture, culture, food, ethnicity, music, literature etc. Goa has diligently maintained the 17th century Portuguese mansions, heritage houses and churches. However just 25% of Goa is Christian. It is important to note that Goa has been a multicultural society before and after Portuguese rule, with just 25% being Christian. Only the older generation speak Portuguese to this day. But Portuguese architecture does give Goa a distinct image

In the case of Indonesia, one might say that the height of Portuguese missionary activities occurred only in the latter half of the 16th century. By that time, the Portuguese had somewhat consolidated their position. Consequently, their East Asian interest was shifting to their existing colonies in India, Sri Lanka, Japan, Macau and China. Their sugar trade in Brazil and the Atlantic slave trade which extended upto Sao Tome, in turn further distracted their efforts in the East Indies. By 1575, the Portuguese presence in the East Indies was reduced to Solor, Flores and Timor ( Portuguese Timor). 

Therefore, the Portuguese influence on Indonesia culture has been underwhelming, mostly limited to the romantic keroncong guitar ballads, some Indonesian words and family names in Eastern Indonesia with Portuguese sounds. Christian influence too has been limited and restricted to communities in some Eastern islands.

Looking back at the exploratory voyages and subsequent conquests of the Portuguese, it would appear that globalization began with them. After 500 years of Portuguese rule, the Christian communities in all the three places have continued to exist till today and contributed to a sense of shared interest with modern Portugal.