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Hubertus van Mook | |
|---|---|
 Hubertus van Mook,c. 1940s | |
| Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies | |
Lieutenant | |
| In office 8 March 1942 – 15 October 1948 In exile until 1 October 1945 | |
| Monarchs | |
| Preceded by | Alidius Tjarda van Starkenborgh |
| Succeeded by | Louis Beel (as High Commissioner) |
| Minister of Colonial Affairs | |
| In office 21 May 1942 – 23 February 1945 | |
| Prime Minister | Pieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy |
| Preceded by | Pieter Sjoerds Gerbrandy |
| Succeeded by | Josef Schmutzer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Hubertus Johannes van Mook (1894-05-30)30 May 1894 |
| Died | 10 May 1965(1965-05-10) (aged 70) L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, France |
| Alma mater | Leiden University |
| Occupation |
|
Hubertus Johannes "Huib" van Mook (30 May 1894 – 10 May 1965) was a Dutchadministrator in theEast Indies. During theIndonesian National Revolution, he served as thelieutenant governor-general of the Dutch East Indies from 1942 to 1948.[1] Van Mook also had a son named Cornelius van Mook who studiedmarine engineering at theMassachusetts Institute of Technology.[1] He also wrote aboutJava - and his work onKota Gede is a good example of a colonial bureaucrat capable of examining and writing about local folklore.
Hubertus van Mook was born inSemarang inCentral Java on 30 May 1894. As with many Dutch andIndos (people of European and Indonesian heritage) growing up in the East Indies, he came to regard the colony, particularlyJava, as his home.[2] He studied Indology atLeiden University, and then returned to the Dutch East Indies. In 1931, he became a member of theVolksraad, 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 toGovernor-General of the Dutch East IndiesAlidius Tjarda van Starkenborgh Stachouwer, and appointed him lieutenant governor-general.[4] Immediately prior to thesurrender of the East Indies to theJapanese on 8 March 1942, theDutch East Indiesgovernment in exile nearBrisbane,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 colonial affairs. 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 Naziinvasion andoccupation, much of the task of retaking the East Indies following theJapanese 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 inJava andSumatra were challenged by a nascent Indonesian republic led bySukarno andHatta.
On 1 October 1945, Van Mook arrived back in Java along with elements of theNetherlands Indies Civil Administration. However, their presence generated much outrage from much of the Indonesian populace who were opposed to the restoration of Dutch colonial rule.[2] With Dutch support being limited to Christian areas likeAmbon andManado, which were at that time (not before WWII) the chief sources of recruitment for theRoyal Dutch East Indies Army.,[8] even though the majority ofRoyal Dutch East Indies Army soldiers had always beenJavanese Muslims, the largest ethnic group in the colony. Republican forces had taken control ofManado by February 1946, before being subdued by allied forces, and many ChristianManado andAmbonesse supported the Republic, including chief representative for theUN,Lambertus Nicodemus Palar, Leimena,Alexander Andries Maramis. On the other hand, many leading Dutch supporters were from Muslim areas, includingSultan Hamid II,Andi Azis,R. Abdulkadir Wijoyoatmojo (later chief Dutch negotiator in the talks leading to theRenville Agreement). While van Mook planned to grant independence to Indonesia, he advocated afederalRepublic of the United States of Indonesia with strongpolitical and economic ties to the Netherlands. He regarded Sukarno's republic as economically inept and unable to ward off theIndonesian Chinese,Indonesian Indians, and the risingIndonesian Communist Party, and began cultivating links with Indonesian leaders outside Java, particularly in West Java and eastern Indonesia. He organised a number of conferences aimed at offsetting the influence of the republic.[9][10]
The above factors and violations of theLinggadjati Agreement prompted the East Indies government to launch apolice action in mid-1947, which was known asOperation Product. The KNIL andRoyal Netherlands Army occupied large areas of Java and Sumatra, with theRepublican army offering only weak resistance.[11] However, the Dutch were held back from full conquest of the Republic by pressure from theUN Security Council and theUnited 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.
TheRenville Agreement, as the armistice was called, stipulated the withdrawal of Indonesian forces from Dutch-occupied territory and the establishment of aceasefire boundary known as theVan 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 asOperation Kraai in December 1948.[14]
Van Mook subsequently broke links with both Indonesia and his home country, and took a job with theUnited Nations. However, not long after this, he died inFrance.[10]
| Honours | ||||
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 29 August 1947 | Elevated from Commander |
 | Knight of theOrder of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | ||
 | Order of the Jade 3rd class | Republic of China | 22 July 1939 | |
 | Grand Cordon of theOrder of the Liberator | Venezuela | 22 August 1944 | |
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (lieutenant) 1942–1948 | Succeeded byas High Commissioner |
| Preceded by | Minister of Colonial Affairs 1942–1945 | Succeeded by |
| Company appointed (1610–1800) |
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|---|---|
| Government appointed (1800–1948) |
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