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The Life of Deli Tobacco Plantation’s Workers in East Sumatera, 1880-1930         | 30 

 

Received:  
June 2, 2021 
 
Revised:  
June 5, 2021 
 
Accepted:  
June 7, 2021 

The Life of Deli Tobacco Plantation’s Workers in East Sumatera, 
1880-1930 

 
Ririn Darini,* Dyah Ayu Anggraeni 

Department of History, Faculty of Social Sciences, 
Yogyakarta State University, Yogyakarta - Indonesia 

 
*Corresponding Author: ririn_darini@uny.ac.id 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.14710/ihis.v5i1.11150 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Introduction 
In the framework of the implementation of modern imperialism, through its liberalism 
policy, the colonial government issued an Agrarian Law 1870, that applied in the 
Dutch East Indies. Since then, many private entrepreneurs have invested in the Dutch 
East Indies, including in Deli in East Sumatra. Deli had experienced rapid economic 
growth after the success of Jacobus Nienhuys to develop tobacco plants. Through a 
wide land concession permit from the Sultan of Deli, the Dutch trading company 
Nederlandsch Handel Maatschappij (NHM) together with Janssen, Clemen, and 
Nienhuys on November 1, 1869 established the first limited liability company engaged 
in the field of reach in East Sumatra, Deli Maatschappij. The great advantage of this 
cultivation led to many other entrepreneurs also interested in developing tobacco in 
the region (Stoler, 2005). 

In 1871, the predecessors of the Senembah Company, namely Naeher and Grob, 
opened the Tandjong Morawa company on the border of Deli and Serdang. At first, 
they grew nutmeg, as well as cocoa, tilapia, and coconut. Then from this plantation 
Senembah Maatschappij was founded in 1889 (Janssen, 1914, p. 9) which developed as 
a tobacco company.  Besides Senembah Maatschappij, there are also several large 
tobacco companies in East Sumatra, such as the Deli-Batavia Maatschappij (1875), the 
Amsterdam-Deli Maatschappij, the Tobacco Company Arendsburg, and the United 

Abstract 
 

This paper aims to reveal the life of Deli tobacco plantation workers in East 
Sumatra during the period 1880-1930. The problem was focused on the policies 
issued by the colonial government on labor and its implementation, and its 
consequences for the lives of the plantation workers. This study applies a historical 
method which includes four stages, namely heuristics, criticism, interpretation, 
and historiography. The result shows that through a variety of policies that apply 
in plantations cause daily laborers were very tied to plantation life. They will 
receive physical sanctions if they violate the rules. The living facilities on the 
plantations were initially very limited, although later efforts were made to improve 
the company. Meanwhile the entertainment facilities, such as prostitution in which 
actually made their lives even more difficult. 
 
Keywords: Workers; Tobacco Plantation; East Sumatra; Colonial Business. 



 
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Langkat Plantations Maatschappij (Volker, 1928, p. 13) 
The development of the plantation business in Deli turned out to be experiencing 

difficulties related to worker issues. It was because the population in East Sumatra at 
that time was still very sparse and the reluctance of local communities, both Melayu 
and Bataks, to work in the plantation companies (Perret, 2010). In 1866 Nienhuys first 
came up with the idea of contracting workers from China and paying them based on 
the amount and quality of tobacco each worker produced (Pelzer, 1978). The idea was 
later modified by J.T. Cremer as a former gardener who became minister of the colony 
(1897-1901), proposed to bring in coolies from outside. Initially, Chinese coolies were 
imported from Penang, and then coolies from Java. To attract workers, brokers 
persuade prospective coolies by promising them high salaries. Brokers also commit 
fraud and even kidnapping (Said, 1977). 

Efforts to bring in these migrant workers require very large costs. As a result, 
plantation entrepreneurs try to bind the workers and ensure that the workers are 
always ready to work on the plantations. For this reason, plantation entrepreneurs 
through the government issued a regulation called koelie ordonantie which also 
mentions the poenale sanctie rule. This rule greatly benefits the plantation owners 
because they have the right to punish workers who are negligent in their work. In 
addition, the employers also suppress the wages of workers in such a way that the 
workers must be involved in debt to meet their needs, and in the end, they continued 
to extend their contracts to become plantation workers. 

There are several studies which expose Deli, especially on the plantation worker 
issue. The study from Breman (1997) describes the cruel practice of colonial politics 
against migrant workers working on plantations. He concluded that the violence 
received by the workers was structural violence because of the conspiracy between the 
colonial government and the owners of capital. Meanwhile, Stoler (2005) examines 
Sumatran plantation workers for a long period, from the colonial era to the New Order 
era. According to Stoler, the state plays an important role as an agent of direct and 
indirect control for the workers. Meanwhile, Sairin (1997) explained about the income 
of Javanese workers on Sumatran plantations and their strategies for survival. Sairin 
(1997) also reveals the ways in which plantation companies bind their workforce. 
Suwirta (2002) examines worker issues as the efforts to maintain workers. Rosyidah 
(2012) and Anisyah (2018) discusses female coolies in tobacco plantations. 

In contrast to previous studies, this paper focuses more on the daily lives of 
tobacco plantation workers in Deli. This article aims to reveal about the lives of tobacco 
plantation workers in Deli related to the policies issued by the government regarding 
employment and its implementation in the plantation areas. The initial period used is 
1880 taking into account that the koeli ordonantie regulation was officially issued. The 
year 1930 is used as the end of the period, because in 1930 America passed a new Tariff 
Act which prohibited the goods imports in which produced on the basis of forced or 
contract worker. In particular, this study targets the Dutch East Indies by imposing an 
embargo on the import of tobacco packs if contracted workers on the east coast of 
Sumatra with punitive sanctions still apply. 



 
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Method 
This study was conducted using the historical method which consisted of four stages 
of research. The first stage is the heuristic or source collection. The second is source 
criticism, emphasizing on the internal criticism, which will produce historical facts. 
After obtaining historical facts, the next step is interpretation or arranging historical 
facts as a unified whole. The last step is historiography. 

The sources used in this study are written documents collected from archival 
institutions and libraries. In addition, also through online explorations on historical 
sources, some facts are revealed. Staatsblad van Nederlandsch Indie (1880), De Million uit 
Deli by Van den Brand's (1902), Oerbosch tot Cultuurgebied by T. Volker (1928), Schadee 
(1919), and Uit Onze Colonial (1903) by van Kol. In addition to these sources, 
contemporary novels will also be used to describe the daily life in plantation 
communities, including the works of Hamka (1966) and Lulofs (1985). 
 
Colonial Penetration in Tobacco Plantation Business in Deli 
The presence of tobacco plantations in East Sumatra began with the efforts made by 
Jacobus Nienhuys to develop tobacco plantations in 1863. These efforts yielded 
extraordinary results. The tobacco leaves produced are of good quality so they can be 
sold at high prices. In 1865 he managed to sell as many as 189 bales of tobacco leaves 
easily in Europe at a high market price. The profits obtained attracted the attention of 
other entrepreneurs to participate in investing in East Sumatra. Among them was the 
Nederlandsche Handel Maatschappij, a Dutch trading company owned by King Willem I, 
who invested in the Nienhuys plantation, namely Maatschappij in 1869. In line with 
the issuance of Agrarische Wet 1870, many private venture capitals expanded tobacco 
plantations in Indonesia and turned forest areas into plantations. 

The period from 1873 to 1884 became a development period of tobacco 
cultivation. In 1872 there were 13 plantation companies operating in Deli, each one 
Langkat and Serdang. At the end of the next period, there were 44 companies in Deli, 
2 in Bedagai, 1 in Padang, 20 in Langkat, and 9 in Serdang. Deli tobacco production 
value was also increasing. The yield in 1884 of more than 125,000 packages with a value 
of about 27,550,000 guilders made Deli became one of the world's main tobacco-
producing regions and Amsterdam one of the most important tobacco markets in the 
world (Schadee, 1919, p. 19). However, tobacco industry had been hit when the crisis 
occurred to 169 companies in 1891. Between 1870 and 1895, tobacco exports increased 
from 2,868 to 204,719 bales. Deli has even become a major source area for the expansion 
of the American cigar industry (Airries, 1995, p. 69). 

Besides the Deli company being the largest, several other major tobacco 
companies were Sanembah Company in 1871, Deli-Batavia Company in 1875, Amsterdam-
Deli Company, Tobacco Company "Arendsburg" in 1877, and United Langkat Plantations 
Company. As their topography is suitable for growing tobacco, plantations began to 
expand to other areas of the Langkat and Serdang sultanates.  In a relatively short time, 
plantation companies have been established along the east coast of Sumatra, stretching 
from the Asahan River in the south to the Batangan River in the north, a distance of 



 
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about 200 km (Broersma, 1919, p. 164). 
In 1891 there was a tobacco crisis as a result of overproduction since the late 

1880s. As more plantations were established in Deli, Langkat, and Serdang and tobacco 
production continued to increase throughout the 1880s due to attractive prices on the 
world market, signs of excess tobacco production began to appear at the end of the 
decade. Production in 1891 reached 500,000 bales. The overproduction caused a crisis 
so that the price of tobacco on the world market fell by more than 50%. The most 
important factor causing the tobacco crisis was the world market which experienced 
an increase in tobacco supply due to the increase in Deli tobacco production. The next 
factor is the issuance of the Mc. Kinley (tobacco imports tariffs in the United States). 
Import duty rates were raised so that America would not buy tobacco. This rate varied 
from 35 cents to 75 cents per pound depending on the quality, but by 1890 it had risen 
to $2 per pound. In 1891, America did not participate in the purchase, while the supply 
of the new tobacco harvest that year increased by more than 25% over the previous 
year (Thee, 1977, p. 10). 

As a result of the crisis, several tobacco plantations began to close. Between 1890 
and 1894 about 25 tobacco companies were dissolved. In 1896 the number of tobacco 
plantations remained 120 and in 1904 it shrunk again to 114 plantations. The newly 
opened plantation in Padang-Bedagai only operated until 1892. In 1891 there were 170 
tobacco plantations in operation, in 1927 only 70 plantations remained. Many 
plantation lands were then diverted to other plantations such as coffee, rubber, and oil 
palm. The tobacco crisis of 1891 marked the end of the first phase of Deli tobacco 
development. 

The next phase is the consolidation phase. After the crisis, the remaining tobacco 
plantations were managed by people who were genuinely interested in investing in 
tobacco plantations. Efforts were made to rationalize tobacco plantations. To get 
quality Deli cigar wrapping tobacco leaves, special soil, climate and care are needed. 
Deli wrapping tobacco is a monopoly product that has high quality due to the unique 
combination of climate and soil. Only plantations that exist in suitable locations and 
climates are continued as tobacco plantations, namely in Deli, especially around 
Medan and Binjai. 

Production methods were improved and scientific research was carried out to 
overcome plant diseases and improve the quality of Deli tobacco. The Deli Research 
Institute was established under the supervision of the Deli Planter Association / Deli 
Planter Vereeniging (DPV) which carries out important research activities on ways to 
improve Deli tobacco quality. The process of consolidating tobacco plantations in Deli 
in 1920 left only four large tobacco plantation companies, namely Deli Company, The 
Deli-Batavia Company, The Sanembah Company, and The Arendsburg Company (Thee, 1976, 
p. 11). 

     Until 1940, almost all tobacco plantations in East Sumatra were operated by 
these four large plantations. Although the number of tobacco plantations decreased 
over the decades, the area planted to tobacco each year has not changed much, varying 
from 14,000 to 20,000 ha annually. The total area of tobacco controlled by plantations 



 
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is certainly larger, at least 8 times the area planted with the shifting cultivation system 
practiced by Deli tobacco farmers. The tobacco crisis has also taught planters an 
important lesson that highly profitable tobacco cultivation cannot be practiced 
everywhere in East Sumatra. 
 
Labor Recruitment 
The availability of worker is one of the supporting factors to sustain large plantations. 
However, in the case of Deli plantations, the labor factor has become a big problem, 
including since the first plantation owned by Nienhuys was opened in 1863. This is 
because the population in Deli is still sparse and they do not want to become plantation 
workers (Encyclopedisch Bureau, 1919, p. 132). In general, Malays and Bataks are not 
willing to work for plantations because they are used to shifting cultivation and do not 
like to work regularly from morning to evening. Therefore, to overcome labor 
problems, workers from outside Deli were brought in. The workers were procured 
through Chinese brokers from Penang and Singapore. However, it was later realized 
that it would be cheaper to bring in labor from Java. At the end of 1875 there were 
about 50 companies with about 4000 Chinese and 1000 Javanese and Keling 
(Encyclopaedisch Bureau, 1919, p. 132). 

There are several factors that cause plantation entrepreneurs in Deli to recruit 
workers from Java. First, the uncertainty about which Chinese workers will be sent to 
the plantations because of the negative image of plantations in Deli spread by the 
Chinese press. Second, Javanese workers are considered to have a more obedient 
nature than Chinese workers who tend to be rebellious and conspire. Third, the 
Chinese government urges an increase in labor wages so that workers can set aside 
some of their wages to be sent to their families in China (Breman, 1997, pp. 64-67). 
These factors caused the plantation entrepreneurs to bring in workers from Java. The 
number of workers coming from outside Deli can be seen in Table 1. 

 
Tabel 1. Number of Immigrant Workers in East Sumatra, 1883-1930 

Year Ethnics 
Chinese Javanese Indians 

1883 21.136 1.711 1528 
1893 41.700 18.000  2000 
1898 50.846 22.256 3360 
1906 53.105 33.802 3260 
1913 53.617 118.517 4172 
1920 27.715 209.459 2010 
1930 26.037 234.554 1021 

Sources:  Wie, 1977, p. 39. 
 
The deployment of workers from Java, received support from the government, 

especially at the beginning of the twentieth century poverty in Java continued to 
increase due to population growth, narrowing of land, and increased living needs. 
Javanese workers were obtained through Deli Planter Vereeniging (DPV) agents 



 
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managed by Europeans with Javanese field workers, known as Werek-Deli. The main 
targets of these werek are villagers who are less educated, illiterate, still innocent so 
they are easily deceived. They were persuaded and deceived about the success story 
on the other side of the Deli plantation. Delis are often advertised as paradise lands, 
where money, land, and women are abundant. Many villagers in Java are lured into 
free cash advances, when in fact the down payments are considered debts that they 
must repay by reducing their income as contract workers (Lulofs, 1985). 
 
Koelie Ordonantie 
The immigrant worker system is not profitable for plantation companies. It has several 
disadvantages and requires very large costs so that it brings a certain inelasticity to 
plantation operations, and causes instability in the East Sumatran economy. It results 
fluctuations in population numbers which happened when the immigrant workers are 
imported or sent home in large numbers (Thee, 1976, p. 44). Due to the high cost of 
bringing in these workers, either from China or from Java, plantation companies to 
bind the workers and ensure that these contract workers keep all signed agreements. 
Moreover, there were many cases of workers fleeing from plantations after receiving 
advances due to inadequate supervision (Schadee, 1919, p. 13). 

Given the difficult problems, the Dutch East Indies government in 1880 issued a 
regulation for plantation workers called Koelie Ordonantie (“Deli Data 1863-1938,” n.d.). 
Koelie Ordonantie entered into force on October 28, 1880, is a regulation regarding the 
duties and obligations of the coolies. These workers are bound in a contract with the 
employers so that the workers find it difficult to terminate the contract. The contents 
of the Coolie Ordinance work contract are contained in the State Gazette (Staatsblad) 
No. 133 of 1880 which states that there should be no relationship between a coolie and 
an employer without a written agreement. In the contract written name and 
occupation. The length of work is 10 hours a day with a three-year contract period. 
The responsible official must prove that the contract is voluntary and the coolie 
confidently carries out the work assigned to him and must not leave the plantation 
without written permission. The contract stipulates the employer's obligation to 
provide accommodation complete with washing and drinking water facilities. When 
the contract expires, the coolies must be returned to their original place if the coolies 
so desire. Every violation of the employment contract will be punished, on the part of 
the employer in the form of a fine of not more than 100 guilders, on the part of the 
worker who does not receive wages of no more than three months. 

The coolie ordinance was made to regulate the relationship between coolies and 
their employers. In the Koeli Ordonantie regulations, it is known that the Poenale Sanctie 
law was imposed on workers who run away. Poenale Sanctie ruled threats of refusal to 
do work or punishment if they escape. According to this regulation, workers are not 
allowed to leave the plantation area, workers must work obediently, workers cannot 
run away, and cannot rebel. 

Coolies who violate the rules can be sentenced to imprisonment, fines, or forced 
worker for a period that exceeds the term of the contract. In addition, plantation 



 
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companies are also trying to reduce the level of wages for workers so that workers will 
always be in debt and as a result these workers are forced to extend contracts to pay 
debts. Poenale Sanctie basically aims to bind coolies to always obey the coolie ordinance 
rules. In practice, this coolie ordinance is more detrimental to the workers. Brand 
widely criticized the atrocities committed by the gardeners to their workers. This 
regulation protects the interests of plantation entrepreneurs rather than protecting the 
rights and interests of workers (Brand, 1902). 

 
Social Class and Plantation Facilities 
Communities in the tobacco plantations in Deli are classified and separated rigidly 
based on status and wage system, nation, skin color, and race. The division of labor on 
plantations is based on nationality. Tobacco plantation work organization has been 
determined, namely one plantation is led by an administrator who supervises 4 
assistants, 1 chief supervisor, and 12 supervisors including tandil, with area of 280 ha 
(400 bau). An assistant can supervise 3 supervisors with 70 ha (100 bau), and 1 
supervisor in charge of 50 contract laborers (Breman, 1997, p. 97). 
     Plantation communities are divided into four groups which include administrators, 
staff employees, non-staff employees, and labors (Mubyarto, 115). Europeans 
dominated the upper class. The European staff of the tobacco companies in Deli 
consisted of 740 people, not including the European staff of the Deli Planter secretariat 
and the Deli trial center which numbered 26 people. Of these, 556 were Dutch (Volker: 
65). This upper-class society includes administrators or managers called masters or 
gardeners, assistants and plantation supervisors (opziechter). They are mostly 
adventurers from Europe who have ambitions to collect treasures. The second class 
which consists of Eurasian descent and contract coolies who have advantages. There 
are middle class groups who work as clerks (kerani) in the field of administration, 
generally Chinese people who can speak Malay, as the language of instruction on 
plantations. The third class is foremen (non-staff employees), including foreman 
planting, harvesting, processing, sorting, packing, and so on. Meanwhile, the lower 
class are the contract workers who are dominated by Chinese, Keling, and Javanese. 
     In addition, in the tobacco plantation community, there is also a division of worker 
based on ethnicity which aims to facilitate the accountability of the coolies in the event 
of unfinished work. The Chinese were assigned the task of planting and picking 
coolies, the Javanese as hoe coolies, the Kelings as porters and other transportation 
activities, the people from Bawean and Banjar islands as construction workers, and the 
Batak people. help clear the jungle (Encyclopedisch Bureau, 1919, pp. 133-135). In 1884 
the number of coolies in tobacco plantations was 26,000, who worked under the coolie 
ordinance and 6,000 workers. Of the 26,000 coolies, 21,000 were Chinese, 1800 
Javanese, 1500 Kelings, 1200 Boyans, and 100 Malays. While most of the free workers 
were Chinese (Volker, 1928: 67). 
     The coolies who had arrived at the plantation were placed in barracks or huts that 
could accommodate twenty people. In each barracks there is a leader. The bed of 
porters was lined up, in the middle there was a place to cook, the environment was 



 
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very dirty and lacked water. Such conditions are very easy to cause disease (Breman, 
144). The sewerage site is very close to the barracks, while the barracks themselves are 
full of mud during the rainy season, the walls are made of wood and the roof is made 
of nipa palm. The barracks had no windows, there was only one way in and out. They 
ate in the barracks bed. The coolies did not get a cupboard, they were only given a 
wooden box in which to store clothes and belongings (Lulofs, 1985). 
     Barracks for coolies at any time can be occupied by other coolies and they can also 
move to other barracks if desired by the little master who orders it to the foreman or 
tandil. Married couples try to make curtains with tattered cloth. The proposal to live 
in a separate cottage for married people was opposed by the gardener (van den Brand, 
1902: 69). The existing facilities are very inadequate for the workers. When many 
coolies died due to the plague, the problem of workers' settlements was just beginning 
to become a serious concern for plantation entrepreneurs. In the records of the 
Snembah company, there was a death rate of 71 per 1000 people during the period 
1890-1894. The biggest cause of workers' deaths was due to the cholera epidemic. For 
example, what had been done by Sanembah company in response to the epidemic, 
they paid attention to housing issues on the advice of dr. Schuffner who did a lot of 
research on tropical diseases (Janssen, 1914). Under Janssen's leadership, housing for 
Javanese workers was built and suitable for living in a Javanese village atmosphere. 
The house for married coolies was different from those who were single coolies. 
Housing policy for single koolie in an elongated barracks occupied up to 30-40 people. 
 
Work Routines and Wages 
To open a plantation and produce good quality tobacco, it takes many stages of work. 
The work begins with clearing land. All foreign plantations in East Sumatra were 
opened only by manpower. Clearing of groves of forest, felling of large logs, 
construction of water canals, and land preparation were carried out by plantation 
workers who were imported from outside East Sumatra. Javanese workers made a big 
contribution in clearing forest land in Deli land for plantations. At that time there were 
no machines. They only use simple tools such as hoes and machetes. The next work is 
nursery, tobacco planting, maintenance, supervision, and harvesting. After harvesting, 
the produce is transported from gardens and drying sheds. After drying, it is taken to 
a sorting warehouse, after which it is transported to the port for export. 

Every day the workers do their routine. Fourteen days of work, a day of rest. 
Fourteen days toiling, exhausting and a day playing, smoking, talking about petty 
events. The coolies always worked in the same order. They were awakened by the 
sound of a gong, and went to bed with the sound of a gong. They run the job like a 
machine, without thinking and without understanding why the work is being done 
(Lulofs, 1985, p. 65). 

At 5 a.m., the gong sounded. The foreman or tandil are responsible for the coolies 
in the barracks and check who is not working. Coolies walk in groups to work, and 
start work at 5:30 or 6:00, break at 11:00 for 1 or 1 and a half hours and return to work 
until 5:30 or 18:00. The rule of working for 10 hours a day in practice is often an excess 



 
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of 1 or 2 hours (Szekely-Lulofs, 1947, p. 215). The gardeners, both male and female, 
have to get up at four in the morning because the garden where they work is far away. 
At seven or eight o'clock in the evening they returned to the barracks where they 
rested. They work hard hoeing in eight to twelve hours a day, with very 
disproportionate rewards (Malaka, 2017, p. 68). 

In addition to male workers, plantations also employ women. Women workers 
are related to tobacco plant care, including sorting or sorting, looking for pests and 
diseases such as caterpillars, harrowing the soil, tying and hanging tobacco leaves. 
According to the rules in the koelie ordonantie, female coolies only do light work 
including sorting and tying tobacco leaves, weeding nurseries and fields, looking for 
tobacco caterpillars, sweeping streets, and other work that is not burdensome (Breman, 
1997, p. 101). But in reality, female coolies also do heavy work such as dredging 
pebbles from rivers, breaking stones, hauling and so on (Breman, 1997, p.  101). 

The workers were tasked with making wards (a place for drying tobacco leaves) 
as well as barracks or other buildings related to plantations. The Keling people work 
as porters, namely carrying tobacco leaves in carts to the drying area or to the collection 
point. The Bengalis served as custodians (opas) of warehouses or housekeepers for big 
and small masters. The Chinese workers, had done to sowing tobacco for 40 days until 
the planting season, usually at the end of the month. Meanwhile, the Chinese coolies 
worked to raise young tobacco plants, watering, sowing, looking for caterpillars, and 
preparing the soil for sowing or planting. 

The wages payment under the contract was f0.40 per day. Meanwhile, the 
minimum daily wage on the first contract for male coolies in East Sumatra ranged 
between 30 cents per day (1935-1937) and 55 cents (1920-1921). A survey conducted by 
the government in 1924 showed that the lowest wage for contact coolies in East 
Sumatra was 42 cents (Reid, 2011, p. 59). The wage rate of tobacco workers in East 
Sumatra can be seen in Table 2. If they work for 28 days in a month then they would 
receive f9.8 as their wages, which still be deducted from the down payment (vorschoot), 
so it remains only f2,4 (Sairin, 1997, pp. 29-31). 

 
Table 2. Wages in East Sumatra Tobacco Plantation, 1913-1940 (cents/day) 

Years 
Daily 

Wages 

Allowance for 
Food, Board, 

Health 
Total 

M F M F M F 
1913 43 33 10 10 53 43 
1920 54 42 44 44 98 86 
1925 52 42 10 10 62 52 
1930 58 44 10 10 68 54 
1935 49 30 7 7 55 37 
1940 52 29 5 5 57 34 

Sources: Wie, 1977, p. 99. 
 

 



 
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Table 3. Expenditures for Living Cost of a Worker 
Type of Expenditure Living Cost/ month 
Matches f 0,10 
Salt f 0,11 
Rice f 2,22 
Salted fish f 0,90 
Feeding oil f 0,40 
Vegetables f 0,60 
Tobacco f 0,50 
Korosene (5 bottles) f 0,50 
Total expenditure f 5,33 

 
     Table 3 shows the amount of labor expenditures for a month that was greater than 
the income they received. With income of f2.4 they had to spend for living cost of f5.33. 
It means that the workers income was not sufficient to meet their daily needs. 
Therefore, many workers were involved in debts to the foreman or chief supervisor. 
By pledging their wages, they would not fully receive their wages because it had been 
deducted for debts payment (Hamka, 1962, p. 62). This involvement in debt makes it 
difficult for them to move. 
 
Gambling and Bullying 
Gambling activities and illegal habits in plantation areas are activities that were 
commonly found as an entertainment for workers to overcome boredom. Meanwhile, 
from the plantation side, this activity was deliberately held to bind the workers to 
continue working on the plantation, because through this activity the workers could 
still be in debt. The first debt for coolies was the down payment given. The money 
must be repaid after deducting their salaries. Furthermore, this debt circle is 
maintained by the plantations with gambling and opium. 

This gambling activity is usually done after payday arrives. In 1935, the average 
wage received by tobacco plantation workers was 33 cents per day for male coolies 
and 38 cents per day for female coolies working 13 hours per day. The wages of 
Chinese coolies in tobacco plantations are higher than those of Javanese coolies, at 40 
to 50 cents per day because they were judged to be better at doing their jobs related to 
discipline and endurance. In general, in tobacco plantations, salaries are paid twice a 
month, the big paycheck every first day and the small paycheck in the middle of the 
month (Lulofs, 1985). 

Gambling become entertainment for the workers so that gambling activities 
become a social phenomenon that is inseparable from the lives of workers on 
plantations. Lulofs (1985) in his novel mentions that on the workers' payday which 
takes place every two weeks, the bookies are ready to persuade the workers to place 
their paychecks as bets for gambling games. Many of them immediately lost their 
salaries, so they had to get into debt again and eventually had to extend their contracts 
with plantation entrepreneurs in order to keep earning.Hamka in his novel, Merantau 



 
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ke Deli , describes the coolies who won gambling with a beaming face, while the losers 
looked furious because within two hours the salary money that had just been received 
immediately ran out on the gambling table. Gambling has become a tool for plantation 
entrepreneurs to snare coolies. This gambling has received support from the 
government by granting bookies permits and collecting gambling taxes. Through 
gambling, the coolies got into debt and were forced to extend their contracts making it 
difficult for them to return to Java. This is also described in the novel Lulofs (1985) 
about a coolie from Java named Ruki. After working as a contract coolie in Deli for 
decades and planning to return to Java, the night before his return he was tempted by 
the gambling table. In no time the savings accumulated over the years had vanished 
on the gambling table, even the clothes he was wearing. 

There was a special place for gambling. Foremen, tandils, coolies were often 
involved together in gambling games. Gambling was usually managed by wealthy 
Chinese and organized through foremen who extended credit to coolies who were 
interested in borrowing money. The Chinese also opened grocery stores that served 
the daily needs of coolies, sold opium, ran pawnshops, became bookies, and built 
barracks for prostitution. 

In addition to gambling, opium was also introduced to the plantation 
environment. This is inseparable from the interests of the colonial government in order 
to cover the costs of domestic government, courts, and the deployment of soldiers. 
According to Breman, through the bulk of opium smoked by the coolies, the costs 
mentioned above can be met. The income obtained through opium is a large income 
for the government, especially to increase regional budgets in general. Government 
revenue through opium and gambling in East Sumatra in 1901 reached f2,259,500, and 
in 1902 it reached f2,321,980. 
 
Prostitution 
The first workers brought to Deli were mostly male coolies. European workers for 
positions as management staff are also selected who are not married and many 
plantation companies prohibit their staff from bringing their children and wives to 
Deli. At the end of the 19th century, of all 55,000 Asian workers only about 10-20% 
were women. In Deli plantations, by 1912 there were 100,000 more men than women, 
and of the nearly 100,000 Chinese, about 93,000 of them were men (Stoler, 2005:49). 
Meanwhile, from Breman's records (1997:205) it is known that at the beginning of the 
20th century there were 62,000 workers in Deli Maatschappij, which included 57,000 
male coolies and 5000 female coolies. Both Stoler's and Breman's records show a 
disparity in the number of men and women. This inequality makes women in 
plantation communities a scarce resource and is often a source of conflict between 
Chinese and Javanese workers, and attacks against European workers, as illustrated 
in Madelon Lulofs' novel. 

The imbalance in the number of men and women in the plantation community 
led to the emergence of prostitution activities. The female coolies were imported from 
Java, and the wages they received were lower than that of the male workers. Therefore, 



 
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their income is not enough to meet their daily food needs and even for other purposes. 
In van de Brand's report it is even stated that unmarried female workers do not have 
a house to live in but they live wherever they can find it. Hundreds of female contract 
laborers support themselves by serving the large number of bachelor coolies in the 
Chinese barracks. They were forced and forced into prostitution. 

Stoler (2005:51) mentions various responses to the problem of venereal disease 
among coolies. Some officials argued that this was due to the low wages of female 
laborers, others stated that it was due to the depravity of the female coolies themselves 
as evidenced by the many incidents of child neglect and the frequent sale of the coolies' 
children. The female coolies were part of the bait used to lure male workers to the Deli 
and as part of the solace expected to keep them there. Prostitution usually occurs every 
pay night. At that time female coolies would dress up beautifully and become 
ronggeng dancers. After the ronggeng performance was over, it was continued with 
the practice of prostitution. Plantation entrepreneurs also facilitated by building 
prostitution tents on vacant plantation lands (Stoler, 2005). 
 
Health State 
Van Kol's report (1903:100) states that the mortality rate in plantations is high. For 
example, records in 1901 show that the number of workers who died reached 4,403 out 
of a total of 93,468 people. The workers generally suffer from anemia, fever, dysentery, 
eye disease, bone disease, and ulcers. The high mortality rate is mainly due to 
dysentery, syphilis, and heart disease. A source said that there were cases of syphilis. 
It was reported by a doctor that more than half of the women in one plantation district 
suffered from venereal disease. During a visit to one of the Deli plantations, Van Kol 
reported that in a room without a partition there was a woman with syphilis with 
malaria, beriberi, and leprose. She was a very young girl, lay face down of venereal 
ulcers (van Kol, 1903, p. 106). It means that the plantation community suffers from 
many diseases such as anemia (hookworm disease), skin diseases, malaria, and 
venereal diseases. In addition, outbreaks of cholera and flu were also reported. 

Poor health facilities, low wages, dirty residential environment, working too 
hard, and very poor nutrition are some of the factors that cause the high mortality of 
plantation workers. During the period 1872-1884 it was reported that many plantation 
workers were reported to have died from disease outbreaks. During this time there 
were several cholera epidemics. It was reported that in 1876 213 patients at Deli 
Hospital died of cholera. In 1901 a cholera epidemic occurred again with the death rate 
reaching 40 per 1000 people (Darini, 2021, p. 27) The high mortality rate and to improve 
the health conditions of the workers the plantation side began to repair health facilities 
that were previously very minimal. Health services from plantations such as 
improvement of hospital facilities, environmental sanitation, and nurse visits can 
reduce mortality among plantation workers. 
 
  



 
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Punishment and Violence 
Through the Coolie Ordinance, coolies live a difficult life on the plantations, especially 
with the very burdensome poenale sanctie. Any protest made by the workers will 
result in receiving a caning sentence. The coolies who leave their jobs, or run away, or 
neglect their work obligations, fight, kill, causing a coolie to be punished either in the 
form of fines, caning, or imprisonment. The gardeners in practice act as judges who 
try contract laborers who are considered to have violated the rules. 

The life of the plantation coolies was based on contracts signed by coolies from 
both China and Java, so they could not escape from work. They are forced to work 
around the clock under the supervision of slackers, supervisors, and low-level 
employees on the plantations, who are generally stocky and very violent. They are also 
tasked with looking for traces of the coolies who fled. If they caught the coolie, they 
would beat him to a pulp and lock him up. Various forms of punishment that apply in 
plantations are a form of cruel punishment, for example being tied to a tree without 
being given food and water. Caning or being tied up and then beaten with a rattan or 
stick is a type of punishment that often afflicts contract laborers. 

On the other hand, as a form of protest, the workers also fought back in the form 
of attacks on the superiors of contract workers. The contract laborers who could not 
hold themselves back often attacked their superiors, both Europeans and Javanese. 
According to Reid, almost every year there are attacks on plantation assistants. The 
highest recorded case occurred in 1930, where there were 60 cases of assault with a 
total of two deaths (Reid, 2011, p. 61). 

Violence did not only occur between coolies and their superiors or supervisors, 
but also between coolies themselves. Often there is competition between coolies, 
especially regarding women's issues. As mentioned in the previous section, women 
are so rare that they become objects of struggle for male coolies, especially between 
Javanese and Chinese coolies (Lulofs, 1985). 
 
Conclusions 
Based on the description above, it can be concluded that Deli developed into a large 
plantation area in East Sumatra because its area is indeed potential for plantation 
economic activities and it is especially supported by the policies of the Dutch colonial 
government with the issuance of the Agrarian Law 1870 and other regulations that 
support plantation companies, especially related to labor issues. , such as Koeli 
Ordonantie. The existence of workers is one of the elements of the success of the 
plantation business in Deli. In this case, workers from Java and China played a vital 
role in the development of plantations in Deli. 

Despite having an important role in the success of the plantation business, the 
life of plantation workers can be said to be far from prosperous. Through various 
policies that apply in plantations, the daily life of workers can be said to suffer greatly. 
They do not have freedom, but are bound by plantation life which is conditioned in 
such a way by the gardener. Their work routine is like a machine. They receive severe 
physical sanctions if they are deemed to have violated the rules. The facilities that can 



 
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be enjoyed on the plantation are very limited and even lacking. Meanwhile, the 
entertainment they get, such as gambling and drugs, actually makes their lives 
entangled in a cycle of debt and increasingly tied to plantations. 
 
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