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Indonesian historians hail Zheng He's navigation
While a new Zheng
He Temple
was unveiled Thursday in Semarang, capital of Indonesia's Central JavaProvince,
local historians hailed the Chinese Ming
Dynasty (1368-1644) navigator, who traveled to Southeastern Asia and Africa
600 years ago and left many cultural, religious and economic heritage.
The Jakarta Post Thursday quoted Semarang historian Gan Kok Hwie as saying
that in his 28-year journey, Zheng traveled to some 30 countries worldwide,
making him one of greatest explorers of all time.
As Hwie counted, Zheng, as "the political and trading ambassador of the Ming
Dynasty," had 62 big ships and 252 other smaller ships that carried 27,800
troops. The fleet departed in 1405 from Nanjing,
Jiangsu
Province in China, to Vietnam, Thailand,Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India,
Indonesia, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Mogadishu in Africa.
During his journey, Zheng brought along with him silk and many other goods
for trading. He was slated to have gone back and forthseven times from China to
other countries as far as Africa.
Another Indonesian historian Slamet Muljana, in his book entitled Java Hindu
Kingdom and the Emergence of Islamic Kingdoms across the Archipelago, said that
diplomacy between China and other countries was largely absent during the Yuan
Dynasty becauseof internal conflict. However, the diplomacy was revived in
the Ming Dynasty mainly due to Zheng's efforts.
In what is now Indonesia, Zheng visited Aceh, Palembang, Cirebon, Semarang
and Gresik.
Hwie confirmed that Zheng reached the Majapahit Kingdom in Central Java and
built diplomatic relations with it, whose span ofinfluence has reached most of
Indonesian territory today.
Zheng also established the influence of a Chinese system of government and
politics on the Java kingdom, he said.
According to Muljana's book, when the Java Hindu kingdom suffered from
setbacks, the Chinese Muslim community under Zheng's guidance contributed to the
native people's efforts to establishan Islamic kingdom across the archipelago.
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Emissary