THE CHERIBON AGREEMENT

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25242, 22 July 1947, Page 7

THE CHERIBON AGREEMENT

The Cheribon Agreement, between the Netherlands Government and the Government of the Republic oi Indonesia, was concluded last November after a conference at Linggardjati, near Cheribon. The declared intention c f the present Dutch military operations is to secure the carrying out of this agreement by the Indonesians. The agreement consists of 17 articles. Articles 1 to 9 provide for the establishment of a United States of Indonesia—“a sovereign democratic State on a federal basis”—and of a Nether-lands-Indonesian Union. The United States of • Indonesia would comprise the entire territory of the Netherlands East Indies. The population of any territory might, however, establish" its own special relations with the States and with the Kingdom of the Netherlands, if it decided that it was not willing to join the States. The Netherlands-Indonesian Union would be formed of the United States of Indonesia, on the one hand, and the Kingdom of the Netherlands (comprising the Netherlands, the Netherlands Indies, Surinam, and Curacao) on the other. The reigning sovereign of the Netherlands would oe at the head of the Union, and all decrees or resolutions concerning “joint interests” would be issued by the organs of the Union in the King’s (or Queen’s) name.

“Joint interests” of the Union are defined as “foreign relations, defence, and as far as riecessary finance, as well as subjects of an economic or cultural nature.” The “organs to promote the joint interests” would be formed by the Governments of the Kingdom and the United States of Indonesia, and if necessary by the parliaments of those countries. There would be a Statute of the Union, to be jointly drafted. This would provide, inter alia, for (a) guarantees for the fulfilment of mutual obligations, (b) mutual exercise of civic rights by Netherlands and Indonesian citizens; (c) a regulation of the services to be given by the Kingdom to the United States “so long as the services of the latter are not, or are insufficiently, organised.” Article 17 provides for the settlement of disputes, either by joint consultation or by arbitration. January 1, 1949, was agreed upon by the parties as the date before which they should try to establish the Union End the United States of Indonesia. By this date, at the latest, the inclusion of all Java, Madura, and Sumatra under the de facto authority of the Indonesian Republic would be completed by the gradual withdrawal of Allied and Dutch forces from the arpas occupied by them. The Netherlands Government, by the agreement, recognised the de facto authority of the Republic over all these territories. Article 16 says: “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-opera-tion in military matters.”

The articles of the agreement not summarised above concern chiefly constitutional machinery for the formation of the Union and the United States of Indonesia.