Justus Maria van der Kroef

Author And Professor Of Philosophy And Political Science

Justus Maria van der Kroef, 81, of Bridgeport, died August 19. He was the loving husband of Joan O. van der Kroef. Born in Jakarta, Indonesia, on October 30, 1925, he was the son of Justus Adriaan van Os and Wilhelmina van Loeven of Jakarta.

He is survived by his son Adrian van der Kroef of Newtown; his daughter Sri van der Kroef; and granddaughter Lily van der Kroef.

Mr van der Kroef served honorably in World War II in the Royal Dutch Marines attached to the 29th regiment of the United States Marine Corps, participating in the campaigns to secure the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea in defense of the northern Australian coast.

Upon completion of his PhD at Columbia University, New York, he taught philosophy briefly at Michigan State before coming to the University of Bridgeport in 1956. He taught there for more than 50 years in the areas of philosophy, political science, and American and international politics. He served as chairman of the political science department from the mid-1960s until his retirement.

An internationally recognized authority on Communism in South East Asia, Mr van der Kroef published numerous articles and books, among the latter Indonesia in the Modern World (1954-56), The Communist Party in Indonesia, Its History, Program and Tactics (1965), Communism in Malaysia and Singapore: A Contemporary Survey (1967), Indonesia after Sukarno (1971) and Communism in Southeast Asia (1980).

He served on the editorial board of numerous scholarly journals as well as managing editor of Asian Thought and Society.

During his career he served as visiting professor at Nanyang University in Singapore, the University of the Philippines, the Vidyodaya University of Ceylon, and the University of Queensland in Australia.

A memorial service will be held at a time to be announced at the University of Bridgeport.

 The Honan Funeral Home 58 Main Street, Newtown assisted the family.

The Newtown Bee        October 5, 2007