Dutch Troops Land In Indies

Chronicle (Levin), 11 March 1946, Page 5

Dutch Troops Land In Indies

Press Assn.

First Wave Of Force Of 20,000 1ND0NESIAN REACTION NOT YET KNOWN

By Telegraph

-Copyright

1 . Reeeived Sunday, 9-.30 p.m. LONDON, March 10. Four battalions of Dutch troops, 3000 strong, started landing m Batavia yesterday morning, staces Reuter's correspondent. lit ?( is understood tliat larger bodies are landing- simuitaneously at Semarang and Sourabaya. They are believed to be the first wave of a totai force of about 20,0.00 at sea or ready to move from Malaya and other parts of the Netherlands East Indies. It is understood that Mr. Sjahrir, the Indonesian Prime Minister, was informed of the intended landings on Friday. An English liaison officer left Batavia with Indonesian representatives for Jogjakarta to inform Dr. Soekarno, the -President. Precautions have been taken to protect the refugee camps against possible Indonesian reaction. Indonesian reaction 'is at present not known, but it is understood that the utmost is being done on the Allied side to prevent a collapse of the present Dutch and Indonesian negotiations. Mr. Sjahrir is expected to issue a statement and may resign. Dr. Soekarno may also find it difficult to retain his position. The Dutch troops, who went ashore in landing-craft manned by Royal Marines, wore British khaki and equipment, except for distinctive Dutch forage caps. In Batavia an Indonesian spokesman declared that a protest against the large-scale landing of Dutch troops in dava would be lodged by Mr. Sjahrir to the Allied Commander-in-Chief, East Indies, Lieut.-General Stafford.

Thc Netlmrlands News Agency quotecl ' i Entish Army olficial spokesman as j sayiug that the Dutch troops who land- ! ed would eventually take over from the ; indi.tii troops whc were to he evacuated | in the ships which hrought the Dutch i t'i--ps. The spokesman. added: "Thei Dutch troops will for the time heing "be j st-;t3oiH?d in the so-called Netherlands- j ciiitroiled area to the south and south-

east of Batavia, which was recently considerably extended and now reaches up to Bekassi, about 13 miles from Batavia. ' ' A Dutch. spokesman said the Allied military task :.n Java was still to he completed, and it was immaterial from the Allied p.oint of view which Allied troops executed: the task, so long as it was effected properly.