ONE day in 1933 when I had only just turned 7, my mother Artini took me to meet with Meneer de Groot. Although she was a simple woman, mother had high hopes. Although she was unable to speak Dutch, let alone Indonesian, she was determined to meet with the headmaster of the Hollands Inlandsche School, which was equivalent to a primary school.

Speaking Javanese, my mother asked if I could attend school there. At that time, during the Dutch colonial