The Victors

This chapter addresses how, from the first hours after the Dutch paratroopers dropped on Maguwo airport in Jogjakarta, it was clear that the republican military, the victors at Madiun, would be unable to resist the assault. In a few hours, Jogjakarta, the capital of the republic, was taken. The top civilian leadership, including Soekarno, Mohammad Hatta, and Soetan Sjahrir, after brief hesitation over whether the republican military could offer them shelter, decided to wait in the presidential compound in the sultan's palace for the Dutch troops to take them captive. Then, after months of running and fighting, the end of the war arrived. The Dutch could not overrun the republic in a sudden attack, and the great powers—meaning now mostly the United States—became impatient and pushed another compromise. The republic was to be recognized again, under certain conditions. The chapter then considers how Colonel Simatoepang was appointed as a military member of the Indonesian delegation led by Hatta to the Hague, to work out the final points of the new compromise and to sign the document.