Oevaang Oeray

Johanes Chrisostomus Oevaang Oeray (19 August 1922 – 17 July 1986) was an Indonesian politician. He was the Governor of West Kalimantan from 1960 to 1966 and was the first Christian, ethnic Dayak and only Roman Catholic to hold the position.[1]

Johanes Chrisostomus Oevaang Oeray
Official portrait of Oevaang Oeray
Official portrait, c. 1960s
1st Governor of
West Kalimantan
In office
30 January 1960 – 1 July 1966
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded bySoemadi
2nd Chairman of the
Dayak Unity Party
In office
1 January 1947 – 12 May 1947
Preceded byMarinus Andjioe
Succeeded byAgustinus Jelani
Legislative offices
1977–1982Member of the People's Representative Council
from West Kalimantan
1956–1959Member of the
Constitutional Assembly
from West Kalimantan
Personal details
Born(1922-08-19)19 August 1922
Mendalam, Kapuas Hulu, West Kalimantan, Dutch East Indies
Died17 July 1986(1986-07-17) (aged 63)
Pontianak, West Kalimantan, Indonesia
Political partyDayak Unity Party
(1947–1961)
Golongan Karya
(1978–1986)

Oevaang Oeray was a founder of the Dayak Unity Party, which participated in the Indonesian elections of 1955.[2][3] He was a staunch supporter of freedom of religion and the separation of church and state.[4]

Biography

Oevaang Oeray was born in Kedamin, Kapuas Hulu, on 18 August 1922. He was the youngest child born to Ledjo and Hurei, Dayak farmers and rubber workers.[5]

In 1959, Oevang was selected as the Governor of West Kalimantan by the provincial legislative board. This was confirmed by President Sukarno with Presidential Decree 465/1959, dated 24 December 1959. Oevang's lasted from 1 January 1960 until 12 July 1966.[6] The success of his Dayak Unity Party, which received 146,054 votes during the 1955 legislative election,[6] led to non-Dayaks accusing him of nepotism, selecting only ethnic Dayaks for government employment and thus dividing the province on ethnic lines.[3]

In 1964 General Supardjo, the commander of the IV Mandala Siaga Fighting Squad, took complete military control of the province. He left the area in 1965 after receiving a letter from his wife[7] and was replaced by A. J. Witono, who fought against guerrillas along the Sarawak border.[7] Oevaang Oeray lent Winoto political support.[7]

Since he was one of the close allies to President Sukarno, right after the 30 September Movement tragedy that killed six generals in Jakarta, Oevaang Oeray was accused of being involved with the Indonesian Communist Party.[5] Although Oevaang Oeray was a leftist, he was not a supporter of the Communist Party.[7] Many other ethnic Dayaks were accused of being communist sympathisers during this time.[6]

On 12 July 1966 Internal Minister Basuki Rahmat dismissed Oevaang Oeray, replacing him with Lieutenant Colonel Soemadi.[8] This was a little more than two months before his term was to expire,[5] and based on Decree Number UP.12/2/43-912 of 12 July 1966.[8] Soemadi was reconfirmed in 1967.[8]

Legacy

The government of West Kalimantan has put forth Oeray and Djeranding Abdurrahman as possible National Heroes, but as of July 2012 this title has not been granted.[9] This proposal has received support from the People's Consultative Assembly leader Hajriyanto Y. Thohari.[9][10]

References
  1. Endi, Severianus (8 June 2012). "W. Kalimantan proposes national heroes" [Kalbar mengajukan pahlawan nasional]. The Jakarta Post. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  2. Bangkit Runtuhnya Partai Persatuan Dayak. Harian Equator. Accessed 14 July 2012
  3. Van Klinken, Gerry; Nordholt, Henk Schulte; Hoogenboom, Ireen Karang (2007). Politik Lokal di Indonesia. Jakarta: Yayasan Obor Indonesia; KITLV. p. 467. ISBN 979-461-615-X. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  4. Aritonang, Jan S. (2004). Sejarah Perjumpaan Kristen Dan Islam Di Indonesia. BPK Gunung Mulia. p. 317. ISBN 979-687-221-8. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  5. Aju. JC Oevaang Oeray, Mengorbankan sang Pencetus Pancasila Sinar-Harapan. 31 May 2011. Accessed 15 July 2012. Archived from the original Archived 1 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Sejarah Perpolitikan Dayak di Bumi Kalimantan Barat". Info Pontianak. Retrieved 17 July 2012.
  7. Poulgrain, Greg (1998). The Genesis of Konfrontasi: Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, 1945–1965 [Kejadian Konfrontasi:Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia]. London: C.Hurst & Co. Publisher. p. 262. ISBN 1-85065-510-3. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  8. Pergantian Gubernur , J.C Oevang Oeray – Soemadi – Kadarusno Borneo Tribun. 2 February 2011. Accessed 14 July 2012.
  9. Prabowo, Hermas Effendi. Oeray dan Djerandeng Layak Jadi Pahlawan Nasional Kompas. 13 July 2012. Accessed 15 July 2012.
  10. Usulkan Tokoh Kalbar Dijadikan Pahlawan Nasional JPNN. 12 July 2012. Accessed 15 July 2012.
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