Molly Bondan Story of Enduring Love for Australia and Indonesia

The long-waited Indonesian editions of Molly Bondan’s books In Love With a Nation and Spanning a Revolution were launched at the National Library of Indonesia today.

“I am delighted a new generation of Indonesians will be able to read about the strong people-to-people links between our two nations and how these played a significant role during the struggle for Indonesia’s independence,” said Australia-Indonesia Institute Chair Professor Tim Lindsey.

In Love With a Nation is a collection of Molly’s oral history tapes, her Indonesian broadcasts and her own writings in which she reflects on the remarkable events in contemporary Indonesian history in which she was a participant and witness.

Molly’s book Spanning a Revolution tells the story of her Indonesian husband’s achievements in the service of his nation.

The Indonesian editions of In Love With a Nation and Spanning a Revolution were translated by Professor Sapardi Djoko Damono and Hersri Setiawan published by Yayason Obor in Indonesia with funding from the Australia-Indonesia Institute (AII).

The launch was moderated by Ratih Hardjono with Professor Sapardi accompanied by researcher Prof. Dr. Taufik Abdullah and historian Prof. Dr. R. Z. Leirissa sharing his insights on the books with friends, family and colleagues of Molly and Mohammad Bondan.

Molly Bondan was an Australian who met and married Mohammad Bondan in Brisbane in 1946 while campaigning with other Australians in support of the Indonesian independence movement. Mohammad Bondan had been arrested by the Dutch colonial authorities for his political activities and imprisoned in Boven Digul. During World War II, Bondan and other political prisoners were brought to Australia where they were released.

Born Molly Warner, Molly worked for the Indonesian Department of Foreign Affairs in Jakarta, working on many of former President Sukarno’s English speeches from 1961 to 1965. Molly was also involved in organising the 1955 Asia-Africa Conference in Bandung.

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