When I participated in the seminar, ‘Indonesia across Orders’, at the Gadjah Mada University in 2005, I heard a story that I never forgot and wanted to explore.
The story concerned the struggle for Indonesian independence (1945–1949), when the guerrilla fighters camouflaged their clothes by dyeing the unbleached cotton green, using mango leaves. This story made a strong impression on me. Try to imagine it: if you wanted to join the guerrillas, you just had to boil your clothes in mango leaves and you got your military outfit, ready to go. I wondered if this really happened, so I interviewed several old guerrilla fighters, historians and batik artists working with natural dye. I also searched for information online and finally tried to use the dye myself. These flags are the result. I could not find any evidence in support of this story. The question is: is it a myth or not?