Balai Pustaka

After changing hands twice during the Indonesian war of independence, Balai Pustaka formally fell under the ownership of the Indonesian government.

On 14 September 1908 the Dutch colonial government established the Commission for Native People's Education and Reading (Dutch: Commissie voor de Inlandsche School en Volkslectuur), later shortened to the Commission for People's Reading (Dutch: Commissie voor de Volkslectuur). Along with the foundation of Boedi Oetomo, it served to bring formal education to native Indonesians. At the time, numerous free presses existed, publishing work in either bazaar or Chinese Malay. These works were outside of the control of colonial government and considered harmful to public morals. To provide "reading suitable for native Indonesians," the commission was formalised as the Office for People's Reading (Dutch: Kantoor voor de Volkslectuur) in 1917. In 1918 it was renamed Balai Pustaka. At first Balai Pustaka released Malay translations of popular novels from the West, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Last of the Mohicans, and Sans Famille. It also published original, Malay-language short stories such as Penghibur Hati. With the publication of Azab dan Sengsara in 1920, Balai Pustaka began publishing original novels. During this time Balai Bahasa practised strict censorship. Works such as Salah Asuhan were blocked from publication until they fulfilled the publisher's demands. It also required the use of formal Malay for works in that language; this requirement led to a disproportionate number of Sumatran writers being published.

During World War II and the Indonesian National Revolution, control of Balai Pustaka changed hands twice. After the Dutch surrendered, the Japanese gave control of Balai Pustaka over to the native Indonesians. It was later retaken by the Dutch in July 1947, and then formally returned to Indonesian control in 1949 when the Dutch formally acknowledged Indonesia's independence. Currently, Balai Bahasa is a state-owned publisher. Aside from publishing books, it also prints the national exams for senior high, vocational, and junior high schools.