Lauw Giok Lan

Lauw Giok Lan was a prominent Chinese Indonesian journalist and writer in the early 20th century. He was born in Batavia, the capital of the Dutch East Indies, in 1883. He received his education at a Hokkien school and learned to speak Dutch as well. After his father's death in 1890, he was raised by his mother who worked as a seamstress. He started working at a young age, first at a shop in Glodok and then for a printer who published newspapers and magazines. He developed an interest in journalism and writing, and joined the staff of Sinar Betawi in the early 1900s. He later worked as an editor for Perniagaan and Penghiboer, and co-founded the influential newspaper Sin Po in 1910. He also translated and wrote several books, including a completion of Lie Kim Hok's unfinished novel Prampoean jang Terdjoewal, a Malay adaptation of Victor Ido's play Karina Adinda, and his own original play Pendidikan jang Kliroe. He was also involved in various social and cultural organizations, such as the Tiong Hoa Hwee Koan and the Cheng Hwa Hui. He moved to Bandung in 1923 and worked for the magazine Sin Bin, and later returned to Batavia and contributed to Keng Po. He died in 1953, leaving behind a legacy of journalism and literature that reflected the aspirations and challenges of the Chinese Indonesian community in the colonial era.