Hubertus van Mook was born in Semarang in Central Java on 30 May 1894. As with many Dutch and Indos (people of European and Indonesian heritage) growing up in the East Indies, he came to regard the colony, particularly Java, as his home.[2] He studied Indology at Leiden University, and then returned to the Dutch East Indies. In 1931, he became a member of the Volksraad, the advisory body set up by the colonial administration. There he spoke in favour of greater autonomy for the Dutch East Indies and for equal treatment for different races. From 1937 to 1941 he was director of economic affairs.[3] On 29 December 1941, a royal decree named van Mook the successor to Governor-General of the Dutch East IndiesAlidius Tjarda van Starkenborgh Stachouwer, and appointed him Lieutenant Governor General.[4] Immediately prior to the surrender of the East Indies to the Japanese on 8 March 1942, the Dutch East Indiesgovernment in exile near Brisbane, Australia gave van Mook authority over those areas still unoccupied by the Japanese.[5] However, two weeks later, he was relieved of his lieutenant-governorship and became Minister of Colonies. On 14 September 1944, after he persuaded the Dutch government in exile to establish a provisional East Indies government, he was reappointed Lieutenant Governor-General.[6] Due to his liberal inclinations and sympathies towards Indonesian nationalism, many conservative Dutch distrusted his policies and he was never given the full title of Governor-General.[7] Because of the weakened position of the Dutch due to the Nazi invasion and occupation, much of the task of retaking the East Indies following the Japanese surrender in August 1945 was carried out by Australian and British forces. While Australian forces succeeded in occupying the Outer Islands with minimal resistance, British forces in Java and Sumatra were challenged by a nascent Indonesian Republic led by Sukarno and Hatta.
Indonesians awaiting Van Mook's return to the country.
The above factors and violations of the Linggadjati Agreement prompted the East Indies government to launch a police action in mid-1947, which was known as Operatie Product. The KNIL and Royal Netherlands Army occupied large areas of Java and Sumatra, with the Republican army offering only weak resistance.[11] However, the Dutch were held back from full conquest of the Republic by pressure from the UN Security Council and the United States, which called for a ceasefire.[12] This led to the announcement of a ceasefire in January 1948 followed by a formal armistice. As a consequence, a conflict previously considered to be an internal Dutch affair now took on an international dimension.
The Renville Agreement, as the armistice was called, stipulated the withdrawal of Indonesian forces from Dutch-occupied territory and the establishment of a ceasefire boundary known as the Van Mook Line.[13] Because of problems caused by the differing interests of regional leaders and opposition from elements of the Dutch military and government, in 1948 Van Mook resigned.[10] Meanwhile, some time after the ceasefire, the Indonesian military secretly returned and began guerrilla operations against the Dutch. This led to a second major Dutch police action known as Operatie Kraai in December 1948.[14]
Van Mook subsequently broke links with both Indonesia and his home country, and took a job with the United Nations. However, not long after this, he died in France.[10]
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