In the spring of 1975, a group of South Moluccans were caught conspiring to steal a heavy truck and ram the gates of Soestdijk Palace to kidnap the queen. Ten members of the group in a vehicle full of firearms were arrested. The group's alleged aim was to force the Dutch government to recognize the Republik Maluku Selatan (RMS) as an independent state and try to make the Indonesian government do the same. Seventeen South-Moluccan youngsters were tried and convicted and sentenced to up to six years imprisonment. This was one of a series of actions for this cause during the 1970s, including the 1975 Dutch train hostage crisis, the 1975 Indonesian consulate hostage crisis, the 1977 Dutch train hostage crisis, the 1977 Dutch school hostage crisis, and the 1978 Dutch province hall hostage crisis.