H.E. Swart was a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Dutch East Indies Army who succeeded Gotfried Coenraad Ernst van Daalen as Governor of Aceh in 1908.

Credit Policies and Administration

In August 1908, Governor Swart reversed Van Daalen’s direct government lending policy. In a famous administrative memorandum, Swart argued that direct state loans constituted unwarranted interference in Acehnese society and undermined the authority of native territorial lords (uleebalang). He established a standardized credit contract mandating a 4% annual interest rate and requiring planters to sell pepper at regulated market centers (keude).

See Also

Source

De pepercultuur in Atjeh en onderhoorigheden, H. Heyl, Atjeh Drukkerij en Boekhandel, 1912, pp. 11-15, 18, 44-45.