Research project
Securing Passage: Regulating Chinese Labor Migration to the Dutch East Indies
In the late 19th and early 20th century, hundreds of thousands of Chinese labor migrants crossed the seas to the Dutch East Indies. On the tobacco plantations of northeastern Sumatra and in the tin mines of Bangka and Belitung, they endured long hours and harsh conditions. Their journeys formed part of a wider history of global migration - but how was this movement organized, and which actors made it possible?
- Contact
- Koen van der Lijn
- Funding
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NWO – PhD in the Humanities 2025
Since the 19th century, Chinese exclusion acts in the Americas and Oceania severely restricted the mobility of Chinese labor migrants, shaping migration patterns worldwide. The Dutch East Indies emerged as a unique exception to these restrictive trends, developing an intricate system that circumvented global controls. This research project examines how Dutch consular activities in southern China, the mobilization of Chinese diplomatic and migrant networks, and the participation of colonial employers converged to create a collaborative framework that facilitated large-scale Chinese labor migration. Operating beyond direct colonial oversight, Chinese networks played a pivotal role in shaping this migration system, highlighting the agency of migrants, their households, and co-ethnic intermediaries amidst broader global restrictions.
Taking this system as the main object of study, this research project illuminates the ways in which transnational actors and local colonial imperatives intersected, enabling the Chinese migrant laborers headed to the Dutch East Indies to navigate and partially overcome global migration regimes. This case challenges dominant Eurocentric narratives by showcasing the significant role of Chinese intermediaries and transnational collaboration in shaping migration flows, stressing the importance of the crossroad of area studies and global (colonial) history. Ultimately, the Dutch East Indies serves as a rare historical instance where migration policies were negotiated through a complex interplay of labor, capital, and transnational agency. In so doing, this research contributes to broader discussions on migration history, colonial labor systems, sinology, and the global dynamics of exclusionary policies.
