Commemorating Linggardjati

For a student of the history of Indonesian diplomacy in the 1945-1950 period, March will be remembered as a milestone for the first act of international law performed by the Indonesian Republic since its proclamation of independence.

Fifty years ago, on March 25, 1947, the Netherlands and Indonesia formed the Linggadjati Agreement, which gave the Dutch extended de facto recognition to Java, Madura and Sumatra. (To the local populace of the amiable hillside resort near Cirebon, West Java, after which the agreement was called, the name is Linggardjati; and an "r" is included).

The agreement was ratified by the Dutch legislature, the Second Chamber, on Dec. 20, 1947, whereas on the Indonesian side it was indirectly ratified by the Republican provisional legislative body, the Komite National Indonesia Pusat (KNIP), in its Malang (East Java) session on March 5, 1947. This was by means of a vote of confidence to the Syahrir Cabinet which at the time handled political negotiations with the Dutch government. In pursuance of Article 102 of the UN Charter, the Linggadjati Agreement was registered with the UN Secretariat, whereas the arbitration clause, Article 17 (B), of the agreement was registered with the U.N. International Court of Justice.

However, it later turned out that the significance of the Linggadjati Agreement for the republic must not be assessed merely in terms of its legal status in international law, it being abrogated by the Van Mook government when it launched its first military action against Indonesia on July 21, 1947.

The importance of the agreement lay more in the political repercussions favoring the republic in its international relations, including the deliberations in the UN Security Council to solve what was called the Indonesian Question under Chapter VI of the UN Charter governing the Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes. Thus, Indonesia was recognized under the UN Charter -- which is international law -- as a party to international dispute.

Following the Linggadjati Agreement, Indonesia gained de facto recognition from the U.K., U.S., India and Australia. On the other hand, de jure recognition was accorded successfully by Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. Conspicuously, a Treaty of Friendship and Commerce was signed with Egypt on June 10, 1947.

The achievements in the field of international diplomacy at the time aptly show that the power of diplomacy and the power of the armed forces are two indispensable means in the struggle of the republic to consummate its independence and successfully become the 60th member of the UN in September 1950.

This entry into the Family of Nations, embodied in the UN, was preceded by a historic event on Aug. 15, 1950, when the return to the unitarian state (the Republic of Indonesia) from the short- lived federal system (the United States of Indonesia) lasting for only seven and a half months, took place.

Please note that the title, denoting explicitly "Linggardjati," instead of "Linggadjati" is deliberate, in token of my respect for the endeavor pursued by A.B. Lapian and P.J. Drooglever, editors of the book Tracking down the course of Linggardjati (Menelusuri Jalur Linggarjati), published by PT. Pustaka Utama Grafiti, Jakarta (1992).

SAM SUHAEDI

Jakarta