Richard Leakey proposed the Out of Africa theory in 1985. Many experts support this theory, including Christopher Brian Stringer (Anthropologist from England), Gunter Brauer (Anthropologist), James Watson (Archaeologist), and Max Ingman (DNA expert).
Gunter Brauer stated that modern humans originated from Africa and later spread across the world. James Watson added that modern humans today come from only one region — Africa. Max Ingman proved through Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid (DNA) in mitochondrial genes of men and women that modern humans (Homo sapiens) originated between 100,000 and 200,000 years ago. Based on DNA evidence, these humans are referred to as the ancestors of the Indonesian people.
The cause of this migration was drought in East Africa — regions with tropical climates such as Ethiopia, Somalia, and Djibouti. They followed the Nile River and the Sinai Peninsula to reach the Arabian Levant. Upon arriving in the Arabian region, the migration was divided into several groups. One of them continued their journey along the Arabian coast toward India (South Asia), then to East and Southeast Asia, and even Australia. They had maritime traditions that enabled them to cross the sea. This migration occurred around 50,000–70,000 BCE.
Southeast Asia was inhabited by the Negroid sub-races, namely Negrito and Melanesoid. This is supported by Woyowasito’s statement that the first inhabitants of the archipelago were small-bodied and dark-skinned, and they inhabited the entire Southeast Asia. However, ancient human fossils found in Indonesia show no direct DNA link with modern humans from Africa.
