FREE DUTCH

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 March 1941, Page 9

FREE DUTCH

NETHERLANDS COLONIAL EMPIRE FEELING OF SOLIDARITY WITH BRITAIN. CONFIDENCE IN INCREASING STRENGTH. (From a Special Correspondent in Batavia.) When the Wilhelmus is sung in any town in the Indies it is the almost invariable practice to sing the British National Anthem as well. Portraits of. King George hang side by side with those of Queen Wilhelmina and Hollanders speak of Mr Churchill as “our leader." The feeling of solidarity between the two nations is complete. In surveying the strength of our Allies and their ability to contribute towards the prosecution of the war. complete dependence can be placed on the Netherlands colonial empire. It is in the economic sphere that the Indies can chiefly help. The supplies of sugar and tea which are being sent to fulfil orders placed by the Ministry of Food together with the big Netherlands Indies purchases of Lancashire goods, are tokens of the desire of the Hollander in the East to do everything in his power to assist Great Britain. The monetary agreement covering British purchases in the Indies virtually means that the goods need not be paid for until 2| years after the end of the war, the money being meanwhile invested in Treasury bonds, although wherever possible the Indies are drawing upon their sterling balances for purchases from within the British Empire. ENLIGHTENING TOKIO. After the German invasion of the Netherlands the Japanese appeared to think that the whole structure of the Indies would collapse and that the Dutch colonial empire would be ready and eager for Japan's “assistance” in economic and even in political matters. Instead they found the GovernorGeneral well able to maintain the status quo in 'a country which felt itself quite strong enough to safeguard its interests in trade, defence, and internal government. This greatly impressed the Japanese. The Dutch believe that one of the mistakes of the French Indo-China authorities when the Japanese were making demands against them was their appeal for help to the United States. The Japanese took this to be the best moment for increasing their pressure, and when they found that the United States was unable to’do more for Indo-China than express concern about the future of the country they simply walked in. It is impossible to exaggerate the difference between Indo-China and the Netherlands Indies. In the former there was defeatism from the moment France collapsed; in the latter every setback in Europe had the effect of increasing the Hollanders’ will to victory. No one who has stayed in the Indies more than a few days would ask, as some who do not know the country and the temper of its people sometimes ask, whether the Netherlands Indies would fight if they were attacked. The morale of the people their Government, and the fighting forces has never been higher. The Japanese discovered this during the recent economic conversations. There is probably more truth than might appear on the surface in the assertion of Mr Kobayashi that the Netherlands Indies are not regarded by the Japanese Government as coming within the scope of the “new order in greater East Asia.” A FIRM FRONT. Mr H. van Mook. the director of economic affairs in the Indies, who was appointed by Queen Wilhelmina as Minister plenipotentiary to lead the Dutch delegation in the talks with Mr Kobayashi, has made the Netherlands Indies standpoint perfectly clear in a memorandum circulated recently tc members of the Volksraad which stated that, “It is of vital importance for the Netherlands Indies not only that complete sovereignty be maintained in the country itself but that friendly economic relations be promoted, without discrimination and on as large a scale as possible, with all those parts of the world which are not barred from communication with this country as a result of the war. ...” The Netherlands Indies Budget for the coming years provides for big arms purchases in the United States. Orders have been placed for large numbers of aircraft, including bombers. fighters, and naval flying-boats and. if deliveries are maintained at the expected level, the Air Forces of the Army and Navy will before the end of 1941 be nearly four times as big as they are today. The greatest importance is attached to air defence in view of the large area for which protection must be provided. Flying-boats carry out daily patrols throughout the archipelago. and in repulsing an attempted invasion bombers would be used to concentrate at the threatened points in sufficient strength to deal a decisive blow. The air forces are today already a very potent arm, and if the expansion programme of the coming year can be achieved without interruption the Indies will feel completely safe. The programme includes the training of pilots, air and ground crews, and the extension of the chain of air bases from Borneo to New Guinea. There are close on 100 landing grounds and flying-boat bases in the Indies, with refuelling stations far in the interior of the various islands. Some of these stations are inaccessible by land, all supplies being taken by air.

WELL EQUIPPED ARMY

The Netherlands Indies Army, said to number over 100.000 men. is well equipped for operations in Java and the outer possessions. It is not highly mechanised, but is armed with modern weapons, and apart from the European units comprises Indonesians from those races who have given proof of their fighting qualities in the various colonial wars of last century. All Hollanders and Eurasians (who are classed as Europeans) are liable for conscript service with the forces, and a proposal is now being discussed for enlisting a native Militia if sufficient instructors and the necessary weapons are available. The Army, which has paid special attention to internal security measures since the invasion of the Netherlands is responsible for coastal defence. '1 he fortifications at all strategic points are exceptionally strong, while the naval bases at Sourabaya and Amboyna are considered to be well-nigh impregnable.

The Navy, whose great regret is that the German invasion of Holland put an end to the plan for a battle fleet tc.