Dana Listiana & Rifki Indra Maulana: Invited Colonialism: Re-examining Pontianak Sultanate’s Treaties with the Dutch Colonial Power

The convenors are excited to announce the next seminar in the online Treaties & Empire Seminar Series:
Treaties and Empire Seminar Series | Dana Listiana & Rifki Indra Maulana (Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional Republik Indonesia / National Research and Innovation Agency of Indonesia BRIN RI):
“Invited Colonialism: Re-examining Pontianak Sultanate’s Treaties with the Dutch Colonial Power”
2 May 2025, 13.15 – 15.00 (CET; UTC+2)
Abstract: The initiation of Dutch colonial expansion in the Pontianak Sultanate can be traced back to a 1779 Treaty (Acte van Investiture), followed by a complex web of contractual agreements made over several decades. This colonial expansion can be considered a form of ‘Invited Colonialism,’ in which the Sultan invited the Dutch colonial power to act as their suzerain, protector from the enemies, and exclusive trading partner. We analyse four treaties concluded between 1779 and 1856, which serve as evidence of a shift in the legal relationship and power dynamic between the parties by focusing on the text and beyond the text, which includes the approach, process, and implementation of the Malay worldview. This paper argues that the expansion of Dutch colonialism in Pontianak was characterised by the active engagement of the Sultan and his cooperative approach, facilitating the integration of the sultanate into the Dutch dominion system through negotiations, compromises, and mutual contractual agreements. This paper approaches the concept of souvereignity from both perspectives (the Malay kingdom and the Westphalian system) to analyse the changing position between them from an equal partnership into an unequal one through the conclusion of treaties.
About the speakers:
Dana Listiana is a junior researcher at the Research Center for Area Studies, BRIN, specialised in the history of Borneo. She started her career as a research candidate for the Kalimantan Regional Office for the Preservation of Cultural Values of the Kalimantan Region, which is a part of the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Indonesia. She graduated from the M.A. program at the Department of History, Universitas Gadjah Mada with a master’s thesis on indirect taxes (revenue farming) and the expansion of the colonial state in West Kalimantan in the early 19th to early 20th century. Before, she obtained a bachelor’s degree in history from Universitas Padjadjaran, with a thesis on market institutions in developing colonial economic administration in the outer islands.
Rifki Indra Maulana is a junior researcher at the Research Center for Area Studies, Research and Innovation Agency of Indonesia (BRIN). Prior to entering into the research field, he served as a legal advisor for a member of the House of Representative of the Republic of Indonesia. He holds a law degree from Padjadjaran University (Indonesia) and an LLM in International Laws from Maastricht University (the Netherlands). His research interests include international & EU law, international trade law, legal history, and legal pluralism.