Mohamad Arief — hoofddjaksa (chief prosecutor) of the Civil Administration of Atjeh en Onderhorigheden in 1896 — was the senior native justice official of the Dutch colonial government in the Residency, who was responsible, in early 1896, for the investigation of the uniforms (baadjes) that Toekoe Djohan Pahalawan had had sewn for his government legion. The investigation was one of the immediate triggers of the defection of Teuku Umar of 29 March 1896.
Role in the 1896 crisis
Arief was, in 1896, the hoofddjaksa of the Civil Administration of Atjeh en Onderhorigheden. The hoofddjaksa was the senior native justice official of the colonial government in the Residency, responsible for the investigation of crimes and the preparation of prosecutions. The first letter of Teuku Umar to the Governor of Atjeh (Bijlage II of ATJEH ‘96) records that:
Heeft de hoofddjaksa Mohamad Arief een onderzoek ingesteld naar de baadjes, die ik liet naaien.
— the hoofddjaksa Mohamad Arief has instituted an investigation into the uniforms that I had had sewn. The investigation treated the uniforms as if they were an unauthorised military force rather than the legitimate uniform of a government ally, and was one of the immediate causes of Umar’s rupture with the government.
Significance
Arief is the senior native justice official of the Civil Administration of Atjeh en Onderhorigheden in 1896 and one of the immediate triggers of the defection of Teuku Umar. His investigation of the uniforms of Umar’s government legion was, in Umar’s own account, one of the principal grievances that led to his defection.
See Also
- ATJEH ‘96 (book by A. Kruisheer)
- 1896
- Teukoe Oemar
- Defection of Teuku Umar (29 March 1896)
- First Letter of Teuku Umar to the Governor of Atjeh (Bijlage II)
- Panglima Prang Besar
- Hoofddjaksa
- Civiel en Militair Gouverneur
- Atjeh en Onderhorigheden
- Aceh War
Source
ATJEH ‘96. 1e Deel, door A. Kruisheer, Kapitein der Infanterie O.I.L. (Weltevreden: N.V. Boekhandel Visser & Co, 1913), Bijlage II, Eerste brief van Toekoe Oemar aan den Gouverneur van Atjeh over de redenen van zijn afval: Heeft de hoofddjaksa Mohamad Arief een onderzoek ingesteld naar de baadjes, die ik liet naaien.