Text of the Linggadjati Agreement

[Signed on March 25, 1947, between the Netherlands Commission-General and the Delegation of the Republic of Indonesia]

Preamble - The Netherlands Government, represented by the Commission-General for the Netherlands Indies, and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia, represented by the Indonesian delegation, moved by a sincere desire to ensure good relations between the peoples of the Netherlands and Indonesia in new forms of voluntary co-operation which offer the best guarantee for sound and strong development of both countries in the future and which make it possible to give a new foundation to the relationship between the two peoples; agree as follows and will submit this agreement at the shortest possible notice for the approval of the respective parliaments:

Article 1 - The Netherlands Government recognizes the Government of the Republic of Indonesia as exercising de facto authority over Java, Madura and Sumatra. The areas occupied by Allied or Netherlands forces shall be included gradually, through mutual co-operation, in Republican territory. To this end, the necessary measures shall at once be taken in order that this inclusion shall be completed at the latest on the date mentioned in Article 12.

Article 2 - The Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic shall co-operate in the rapid formation of a sovereign democratic State on a federal basis to be called the United States of Indonesia.

Article 3 - The United States of Indonesia shall comprise the entire territory of the Netherlands Indies with the provision, however, that in case the population of any territory, after due consultation with the other territories, should decide by democratic process that they are not, or not yet, willing to join the United States of Indonesia, they can establish a special relationship for such a territory to the United States of Indonesia and to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Article 4 - The component parts of the United States of Indonesia shall be the Republic of Indonesia, Borneo, and the Great East without prejudice to the right of the population of any territory to decide by democratic process that its position in the United States of Indonesia shall be arranged otherwise.

  Without derogation of the provisions of Article 3 and of the first paragraph of this Article, the United States of Indonesia may make special arrangements concerning the territory of its capital.

Article 5 - The constitution of the United States of Indonesia shall be determined by a constituent assembly composed of the democratically nominated representatives of the Republic and of the other future partners of the United States of Indonesia to which the following paragraph of this Article shall apply.

  Both parties shall consult each other on the method of participation in this constituent assembly by the Republic of Indonesia, by the territories not under the authority of the Republic and by the groups of the population not, or insufficiently, represented with due observance of the responsibility of the Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic, respectively. Article 6 - To promote the joint interests of the Netherlands and Indonesia, the Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia shall co-operate in the establishment of a Netherlands Indonesian Union by which the Kingdom of the Netherlands, comprising the Netherlands, the Netherlands Indies, Surinam and Curacao, shall be converted into the said Union consisting on the one had of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, comprising the Netherlands, Surinam and Curacao, and on the other hand the United States of Indonesia.

  The foregoing paragraph does not exclude the possibility of a further arrangement of the relations between the Netherlands, Surinam and Curacao.

Article 7

A The Netherlands Indonesian Union shall have its own organs to promote the joint interests of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the United States of Indonesia.

B These organs shall be formed by the Governments of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the United States of Indonesia and, if necessary, by the parliaments of those countries.

 C The joint interests shall be considered to be co-operation on foreign relations, defence and, as far as necessary, finance as well as subjects of an economic or cultural nature.

Article 8 - The King (Queen) of the Netherlands shall be at the head of the Netherlands Indonesian Union. Decrees and resolutions concerning the joint interests shall be issued by the organs of the Union in the King's (Queen's) name.

Article 9 - In order to promote the interests of the United States of Indonesia in the Netherlands and of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Indonesia, a High Commissioner shall be appointed by the respective Governments.

Article 10 - Statutes of the Netherlands Indonesian Union shall, furthermore, contain provisions regarding:

A  Safeguarding of the rights of both parties towards one another and guarantees for the fulfilment of their mutual obligations.

B. Mutual exercise of civil rights by Netherlands and Indonesian citizens.

C Regulations containing provisions in case no agreement can be reached by the organs of the Union.

D Regulation of the manner and conditions of the assistance to be given by the services of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the United States of Indonesia as long as the services of the latter are not, or are insufficiently, organized; and

E Safeguarding in both parts of the Union of the fundamental human rights and liberties referred to in the Charter of the United Nations Organization.

Article 11

A The statutes of the Netherlands Indonesian Union shall be drafted by a conference of representatives of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the future United States of Indonesia.

B The statutes shall come into effect after approval by the respective parliaments.

Article 12 -The Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia shall endeavour to establish the United States of Indonesia and the Netherlands Indonesian Union before January 1, 1949.

Article 13 - The Netherlands Government shall forthwith take the necessary steps in order to obtain the admission of the United States of Indonesia as a Member of the United Nations Organization immediately after the formation of the Netherlands Indonesian Union.

Article 14 - The Government of the Republic of Indonesia recognizes the claims of all non-Indonesians to the restoration of their rights and the restitution of their goods as far as they are exercised or to be found in the territory over which it exercises de facto authority. A joint commission will be set up to effect this restoration and restitution.

Article 15 - In order to reform the Government of the Indies in such a way that its composition and procedure shall conform as closely as possible to the recognition of the Republic of Indonesia and to its projected constitutional structure, the Netherlands Government, pending the realization of the United States of Indonesia and of the Netherlands Indonesian Union, shall forthwith initiate the necessary legal measures to adjust the constitutional and international position of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the new situation.

Article 16 - Directly after the conclusion of this agreement, both parties shall proceed to reduce their armed forces. They will consult together concerning the extent and rate of this reduction and their co-operation in military matters.

Article 17

A For the co-operation between the Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic contemplated in this agreement, an organization shall be called into existence of delegations to be appointed by each of the two Governments with a joint secretariat.

B The Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic of Indonesia shall settle by arbitration any dispute which might arise from this agreement and which cannot be solved by joint consultation in conference between those delegations. In that case a chairman of another nationality with a deciding vote shall be appointed by agreement between the delegations or, if such agreement cannot be reached, by the President of the International Court of Justice.

Article 18 - This agreement shall be drawn up in the Netherlands and Indonesian languages. Both texts shall have equal authority.

 

Background from - Steiner, H. Arthur, POST-WAR GOVERNMENT OF THE NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES, The Journal of Politics vol. 9, no. 4 (Nov. 1947), pp. 632-635

See also

- Text and Comments on the Radio address by Queen Wilhelmina on 7 December 1942

- Dutch Proposals for Indonesian Settlement 6 November 1945

- Dutch Proposals for Indonesian Settlement 10 March 1946

- Text and Comments on the Renville Political Principles

- Roem – van Roijen Agreement

- Indonesian War of Independence - Wikipedia

- Politionele acties ('police actions') - Wikipedia

- Parallel and Divergent Aspects of British Rule in the Raj, French Rule in Indochina, Dutch Rule in the Netherlands East Indies (Indonesia), and American Rule in the Philippines