Ceremony at Linggarjati, 11-11-2006

Part of the speech of his excellency, Mr. Wirajuda, foreign minister of the Republic of Indonesia, during the ceremony commemorating the Linaggarjati accord between Indonesia and the Netherlands, november 11, 2006

As you know, I am in negotiations with Mr. Bernard Bot, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs. We hope that before the end of this year, we will be able to sign a M.O.U between our two countries about a far-reaching (in the Netherlands "all enclosing") partnership. It would be a comprehensive partnership between the Netherlands and Indonesia. I told Ambassador van Dam that one aspect of this partnership would be the care and maintenance of the Linggarjati museum. The Netherlands can provide us with the photographic material and documents, which we do not possess. Such documents can be exhibited in the Linggarjati Museum so that every visitor can learn about Indonesia's history, and can respect the struggle of earlier Indonesians to bring freedom to our land

After sixty years, we Indonesians can now speak about our history without rancour, and with a new perspective. Both Ambassador van Dam and I feel this way. This is a reflection of how both Indonesia and the Netherlands, as two sovereign nations, should conduct our mutual affairs. A unique sign of the potential for this new partnership was given last year when the Minister of Foreign Affairs, representing the Dutch Government, on the basis of moral and political considerations, acknowledged the Independence of the Indonesian Republic, August 17, 1945. This was the first such acknowledgment by the Dutch government.

For us, this is a most important step, which opens the door for new possibilities of cooperation. It was the beginning of a plan for a "comprehensive partnership." Certainly we need to consider mistakes made by both our countries, as for a time, we were enemies. But this is a new era, and nobody can deny that we can now be friends; both sides can find a partnership from which each country benefits.

Return to Linggarjati

On Saturday, November 11, 2006, Indonesia commemorated the sixtieth anniversary of the Netherlands's recognition of Indonesia's sovereignty as an independent state. This official ceremony took place in the mountain village Linggarjati in West Java. At the same time, a national seminar was held in Linggarjati focusing on the importance of mediation and dialogue in resolving international conflicts. The festive commemoration was organised by the district of Kuningan, and was attended by Dr. Nicolas van Dam, Holland's ambassador to Indonesia. Dr. Hassan Wirajuda, Indonesia's minister of foreign affairs, was the leading speaker. Choral singers, dance groups and musicians from Kuningan added grace and entertainment to the formal ceremony. More than six hundred guests, mostly Indonesian, were invited. Special guests from Holland were Willem van Os, his sister Joty ter Kulve-van Os and Peter ter Kulve.

" Know thyself" is a classic wisdom of ancient Greece. Recently a canon of Dutch history offers us different windows on our past with the hope that we will gain more self-knowledge by means of the past. Here we are not alone. In Indonesia this idea of using the past to gain some knowledge of ourselves is also bearing fruit. So it is not surprising that Dutch colonial history and the decolonization of Indonesia are getting special attention in both countries. The speech of the Dutch foreign minister, Mr. Ben Bot, on August 17, 2005 in Jakarta, was an important first step in this respect. After sixty years, the Netherlands recognized August 17,1945 as the date of the founding of an independent Indonesia. The Dutch foreign minister expressed regret for what was, in retrospect, an "unnecessary painful and violent separation" of the two countries.

Between the above-mentioned proclamation of independence and the de facto conveyance of sovereignty on the December 27, 1949, a bitter episode took place. The Indonesian struggle for freedom, and the Dutch reaction resulted in war, caused innumerable loss of life on both sides, left many scars and resulted in long-lasting unfriendly relations between both countries. This was "unnecessary," because opportunities had existed for a peaceful transition to the new situation.. "The missed opportunity" was the draft agreement of Linggarjati of November 1946.

The commemoration of this agreement took place near the house where the original negotiations had taken place. The Netherlands was represented by a delegation under the leadership of former Prime Minister Dr. W Schermerhorn and the former deputy governor-general, H. Van Mook. The Indonesian negotiators in 1946 had been, from the Dutch point of view, agitators and collaborators with the former Japanese occupying power. However, in 1918 the Netherlands had made a promise to the Indonesians that in the future there could be discussions about independence. Queen Wilhelmina repeated this promise in her speech of December 7, 1942. In the interim, a process of worldwide decolonization had started.

According to the Atlantic Charter promulgated in 1942, every country was entitled to its own sovereignty. Sukarno, Sutan Sjahrir and Mohammad Hatta, who had all completed their academic studies in Holland, were well aware of this fact. Before World War II, they had been kept in prison and later, sent into exile for years as a result of their struggle for freedom. For them, the Japanese occupation of Indonesia had put an end to the Dutch colonial government. The Dutch had great difficulty in accepting this point of view.

The house where the 1946 negotiations had taken place, made into a museum in 1985, had originally been built by Koos Van Os and Lizzy Dom as their family home. Their children, Willem Van Os and Joty ter Kulve-Van Os, spent their childhood there. Starting in 1980, they began making efforts to preserve the house as an historical monument. To that end, they started, among other things, the foundation " Friends of Linggarjati" in the Netherlands, and its counterpart " FINED" in Indonesia. They seem to have succeeded in their intentions, as the Indonesian government designated the house as a national monument.

The house in Linggarjati isn't meant simply as a commemorative building. It is also a monument for the ideal of peaceful conflict settlement by means of mediation. So the most important place in the house is the room where, in 1946, under the watchful eye of Britain's Lord Killearn, negations had taken place. Pictures of both delegations, with their secretaries and the press, give an impression of the atmosphere in which the negotiations took place. People with totally different backgrounds, from different cultures, with different religions and different social positions, gathered there, ready for dialogue and mediation. In an atmosphere of growing respect and appreciation for each other, the farewell to the colonial period and the transition to new equal relationships were prepared. There was an agreement that the Dutch East Indies would become a federal republic, in which Sukarno's Republique would participate. This United States of Indonesia would remain connected with the Netherlands as a Union with the Queen of the Netherlands as head of the Union. Unfortunately, Prime Minister Schermerhorn, Van Mook, De Boer and Van Poll failed in creating sufficient support in the Dutch parliament for even parts of the agreement, let alone its totality. Thus Sutan Sjahrir, Mohammad Hatta and Sukarno, for their part, could not prevent Indonesian distrust, as the Dutch tried Indonesian patience too long.

But all this in no way diminishes the quality of the efforts of the negotiators. Willem van Os and Joty ter Kulve-van Os are deeply convinced of the value of mediation. Thus, their commitment to found a museum intended to pass on the spirit of Linggarjati to future generations. Their efforts were rewarded in Linggarjati this weekend. In his speech, Minister Wirajuda announced that he intends to keep "the house of negotiations" not only as a monument, but also to present it as an international symbol for the way of dialogue and mediation. The many differences of cultures in Indonesia necessitate mediation. The minister was confident of the Indonesian ability to follow the way of dialogue and mediation.

The Indonesian negotiators of the agreement of Linggarjati are honoured in Indonesia

today for their quality of mediation. The Netherlands also have reasons to rehabilitate their representatives in Linggarjati and to honour them as mediators, especially Professor Piet Sanders. And, posthumously, Huub van Mook, Wim Schermerhorn, Van Poll and De Boer, and Ivo Samkalden.

Written by Monica Bouman

November 2006-11-25
Delden

A HISTORICAL JOURNEY

Who could ever have dreamed that Linggarjati, this little mountain village on the slopes of the Tjerimai volcano, would be thrust into history? Certainly not we three, the children of Koos van Os, when we were playing and walking on the tropical slopes of the mountain, or hiding under the centuries-old Waringins trees, or swimming in little ponds and building dams. Whenever we were hungry, there was always a nearby coconut tree or sweet potatoes, which we roasted on a little fire.

Now I am nearly eighty years old, and I sometimes wonder: Can you roll back history? Can you change the past? Of course I know the answer is, "No. History is not only about events that did happen, but also about things that should have happened but unfortunately did not happen." And it was what "should have happened but didn't" that was commemorated on November 11, 2006 in that beautiful park surrounding the national museum at the foot of the Tjerimai volcano. The museum building itself is a solid house of the 1930s vintage, built by my father. The magnificent volcano in the background seems to be keeping an eye on the museum. The mountain is mysterious, strong, huge, and it has weathered the ages.

In the eyes of the Indonesians, Linggarjati is a mystical site, almost sacred.

We were in Linggarjati to attend the ceremony commemorating the birth of the Indonesian nation and her struggle for freedom sixty years ago. Also attending the ceremony were many dignitaries, including the Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Hassan Wirajuda, Mrs. Wirajuda, the Ambassador from the Netherlands, Nicolaas van Dam, and many other well-known public figures. In all, six hundred guests from all over Indonesia were present.

While sitting there, I thought that my father could not have picked a more beautiful spot to build our home. I felt deeply moved, almost engulfed by history as I thought of my Dad as a symbol of all the Dutch, French, Portuguese, and Arabian people who sailed the oceans and built a new life in vast oversees colonies. They brought with them their own characters, cultures, good and bad habits; there own backgrounds and visions. They sought to build a new life.

Well, isn't this the story of mankind from the beginning~to wander on this little planet? Sometimes history led mankind to the West, sometimes to the East, North or South. But always we remained nomads. And throughout our wandering, we've seen the rise and fall of nations, as well as the birth and death of cultures. The colonial era will be remembered as the Caucasian race trying to implant its ways on those new found lands. But the Caucasians were not the first people who wandered this planet, something so easily forgotten.

So sitting there listening to the Foreign Minister of Indonesia, Mr Wirajuda, unfolding his vision for the museum, for this historical place of Linggarjati where this generous, warm people from so many cultures and religions became one nation, as well as a part of the vast international family, I realized Linggarjati will forever be linked with their fight for freedom.

When I heard Mr Wirajuda invite the Dutch people~in the person of the Dutch Ambassador Nicolaas van Dam~to participate in the Shared Heritage of the two nations, a shared heritage of 350 years, I looked at the volcano and at my former home that is now the museum, and I knew that I was surrounded by the spirits of our Indonesian and Dutch ancestors who were buried there, and now are one with the Indonesian earth. It all gave me a glimpse of the new world humanity is thirsting for, a world where we respect all people, and share with them the benefits of being a world citizen. A new universal spirit seeks to lead mankind on through pain, war, confusion, and hunger in order to realize the thirst for a new dimension of living. The whole human family seeks the security that we will manage to find ways to tackle the great challenges confronting us today.

I was pleased to meet the Dutch Ambassador for a short visit in the beautiful Pendopo of the Bupati of Kuningan. It gratified me to discover that he spoke fluent Arabic, and is already able to converse in Bahasa. I felt the Ambassador understood and cared deeply about the Indonesian people, as well as the challenges that jointly confront Indonesia and the Netherlands.

Our encounter with Indonesians of every walk of life was always warm and friendly, but also realistic. Their question, "Tell me, we wanted only our freedom; so why did you send us your army as an answer?" is a question our historians and we Dutch people should ponder. Indonesians deserve an answer. Maybe if, as a nation, we can honestly face and answer that question, it may help us to look beyond our borders and realize that no matter what we want, we cannot live on an isolated island in the midst of a fast changing world. Maybe we will again gain a vision for the world beyond our borders.

Indonesia has found new friends on the Asian continent, as well as neighbours such as the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and even Canada. Indonesia is strategically situated, has vast natural recourses, and has the largest Muslim population in the world. Against that background, can the Netherlands still mean something to Indonesia? Yes, I think so. This nation, with a fragile democracy only eight years old, still needs a lot of expertise. With their teeming thousands of students coming out of the universities each year trying to find a job, they can benefit from Dutch expertise and technological know-how. Think only of their Water problems. Water technology is very important for Indonesia.

Yes, Indonesia needs the world and the world needs a peaceful, prosperous Indonesia. Furthermore, Indonesia wants to play a role on the world scene. I read in a leading newspaper that foremost on the mind of Indonesia's president, Mr. Bambang Susillo Yudhoyono, is the role Indonesia can and must play in the area of inter-religious dialogue. The President's second concern is a resolve for open diplomacy. He believes only with open diplomacy can the big problems lying in front of mankind be solved.

The President needs the support of his own people but also of the international community. While in Indonesia, we visited their universities speaking with students and professors. Every year millions of students who have finished their studies are looking for work. They have studied sometimes under difficult circumstances, as all of them need a job and, at the same time, to care for a brother or sister. Jobs, jobs, jobs. This is the economic and psychological challenge for the Indonesian government. Just like all other young people around the world, they just want a job to be able to raise a family.

These are some initial impressions. Next time I will write about our visit to a Muslim boarding college where we were invited by the spiritual leader of the NU, the largest Muslim organisation in Indonesia.

Joty ter Kulve