Born: 14 September 1910, Indonesia
Died: 2 November 1965
Country most active: Indonesia
Also known as: NA
Hajjah Rangkayo Rasuna Said was a major figure in Indonesia’s struggle for independence against the country’s Dutch colonisers.
Born in 1910, Said was politically active from a very young age, and joined a political party – the Indonesian Muslim Association (Permi) – in her early 20s. A teacher, she left a position in 1931 because school administrators would not allow her to teach her students about politics. She went on to establish a school for girls in Padang, where Permi’s leadership was based, and dedicated decades to educating girls and women.
An electrifying speaker who delivered speeches “like lightning during the day” according to one biography, her challenge to Dutch colonial authorities earned her the nicknames Singa Bettina (Lioness) and Srikandi (warrior princess), the latter reportedly coming from Indonesia’s first president, Sukarno. The Dutch often halted her speeches, and even imprisoned her in 1932 for 14 months. She was the first woman to be arrested and charged by the colonial government for “sowing hatred” against the Dutch, as well as the first Permi leader to be arrested and tried. The case launched her to national fame, with as many as 1,500 people travelling to attend her trial.
Although she had married her husband against her family’s wishes because he was also dedicated to the cause, their commitment to the work, and the tolls that took, is said to have damaged their relationship, and the couple divorced in the early 1930s. This left Said as a single mother to their young daughter, though she and her ex-husband remained good friends for the remainder of her life, working together for independence.
After her imprisonment, she returned to teaching and took up journalism, writing criticisms of the Dutch for the journal Raya and later editing the weekly magazine Menara Putri, focused on issues surrounding women and Islam.
When the Japanese invaded Indonesia during World War II in 1942, Said joined a pro-Japanese organisation, but used it to continue her independence activities.
After the Japanese were defeated, the Dutch returned to try to reimpose their control, initially with British help, and a brutal four-year conflict began, until the Dutch finally recognised Indonesian sovereignty in 1949. Said became a politician during this period, first locally and then nationally as a legislator in the Central Indonesian National Committee, as well as an advisor to President Sukarno. She remained active until her death in 1965.
Said was declared a National Hero of Indonesia by president Suharto in 1974, only the ninth woman to be granted this honor. One of Jakarta’s main roadways is named for her (Jalan H.R. Rasuna Said).