Enrique de Malacca/Maluku: Another Chapter in the Indonesia–Malaysia Heritage War?

Abstract

Magellan's Malay slave, Enrique, accompanied him on his voyages and may have actually been the first to circumnavigate the world. This paper examines the extent to which the still sporadic and small-scale — but sometimes fierce — online disputes between Indonesian and Malaysian netizens over the “ownership” and “national” origin of Enrique might develop further as part of the long-standing “heritage war” between the two countries. It explains the historical roots of the dispute over Enrique, discusses reactions to it in Indonesia and, to an extent, in Malaysia, and analyses the coverage of and exchanges about Enrique on social media. Set against the backdrop of Lebow's constructivist cultural theory, this paper posits that the mutually reactive national identification process between Indonesians and Malaysians might significantly influence the trajectory of this conflict. If efforts in Indonesia to promote the idea of Enrique Maluku succeed and it becomes truly widely known, what are currently small and irregular skirmishes online over Enrique could develop into another enduring segment of the heritage war between the two countries.