Between Tradition and Servitude: A Historical Genealogy of the Slave Trade and Bonded Labour in Eastern Sumba

This article examines a striking paradox: the persistence of the Ata (bonded servant) class in East Sumba, despite formal abolition since the Dutch colonial era. Employing a Foucauldian genealogical approach and the ‘reading against the grain’ method, the study traces the historical transformation of slavery from the centuries of VOC-era Dutch participation in the inter-island slave trade, through nineteenth-century reframings of human beings as public economic commodities, to privatized ‘customary servitude’ today. The central argument is that the continuity of the Ata class results from a ‘colonial compromise’ wherein Dutch officials domesticated slavery into ‘family systems’ to maintain stability through Indirect Rule. Analysis of Memorie van Overgave reveals that linguistic shifts from ‘slaves’ to ‘pandelings’ (bonded or indentured servants) and ‘huisgenooten’ (household members) allowed feudal structures to outlast formal abolition. The article also addresses the sexual and reproductive incorporation of female Ata into Maramba households, the scarcity of practical alternatives in a subsistence economy, and the visibility of Ata as performers of Marapu ritual, dimensions that complicate any narrative of ‘liberation.’ The findings contribute to understanding colonialism’s legacy in shaping social relations in Eastern Indonesia and inform contemporary human rights debates.