Evening star., 1948-12-24
Wisdom and the Dutch

Wisdom and the Dutch
In view of the seemingly bona fide facts
now being reported to the United Nations
Security Council, it is difficult in the ex-
treme to understand how or why the
Dutch ever thought it would be wise to
launch their latest police action" against
the forces of the Indonesian Republic in
Central Java and Sumatra.
AS self-justif1cation, the Netherlands
government has declared to the Council
that its action-which is really military
campaign-has been forced upon it be-
cause the Republican regime cannot
maintain order and has rendered impos-
sible all efforts to negotiate settlement
along the lines called for in the Renville
truce of last January. Further, the Dutch
contend that the situation involves an
internal dispute, not an international one,
and that therefore the United Nations, as
set forth in the Charter, has no right to
intervene.
But this last point-the claim that the
IndoneSian warfare is outside the juris-
diction of the U. Ms hardly defensible.
For the simple fact is that the Dutch in
August, 1947, after the launching of a
similar police action" agreed with the
Republicans to obey a cease-fire order
issued by the Security Council, and later
they co-operated with the Councils Good
Offices Committee in formulating and
signing the Renville truce-an UNDER
standing designed to bring about a per-
manent settlement establishing an inde-
pendent United States of Indonesia
working closely with the Netherlands.
Accordingly, having thus recognized the
right of the United Nations to intervene
last year, they cannot logically refuse to
recognize it now.
AS for such additional Dutch arguments
as the need to cope with terrorist ele-
ments" and the imposSibility of negotiat-
ing with the Republicans, reports from the
Good Offices Committee serve as anything
but continuation Actually, as charged
by the United States and Australia, the
salient facts seem to be these: Cd Under
the Republican regime, which only recently
fought off Communist uprising, the lack
of order, If any, is not of scale that war
rants the current police action; (2)
since last May no effort has been made to
utilize the U. N. machinery In an effort to
failing to try all avenues of negotiation,
the Netherlands government has unilater-
ally renounced the truce, doing so with
uncharacteristic highhandedness, show
ing little regard for the United Nations.
In the circumstances, although the situ-
alton is not simply one of black and white,
and although Australia seems to have
taken an extreme position in declaring
that the Dutch are guilty of "the first
clear-cut, deliberate violation of the U. N.
Charter" and should be expelled from
membership If they persist in their present
course, the Security Council certainly
faces a challenge that demands action.
Quite clearly, If the prestige of the United
Nations is not to suffer another grave
decline, something like the American
proposal for a new cease-fire order must
be put into effect, and the Netherlands
government must promptly bow to it.
The Dutch, of course, are militarily
equipped to win what they want. But the
Indonesian Republicans, through guerrilla
warfare and a "scorched earth" policy,
can exact heavy toll Beyond that, the
Netherlands government. If 1t defies the
U. NJ, will be risking the loss OF more
Marshall Plan aid; will be endangering
the projected North Atlantic security
pact; will be playing into Communist
hands by exposing itself and the West as
whole to charges of colonial imperialism
in nationalist-minded Asia and will be
making the mistake, above ALL of putting
stigma on its own good name.
These are factors that the Netherlands
historically one of the best and most
respected of all democracies-can hardly
afford to ignore. 1t seems plainly to have
maneuvered itself into grave error, and
it now ought to welcome way out through
any reasonable U. N. order. Surely, states
manship is not so bankrupt that the
problem cannot be solved peacefully to
every ones satisfaction.