Mohammad Hatta

43

Mohammad Hatta : biography

12 August 1902 – 14 March 1980

In February 1942, Hatta and Syahrir were transferred to Sukabumi in West Java.

Japanese occupation

By 1942, World War II was well under way and the Empire of Japan was fulfilling its imperial ambitions in East Asia and South East Asia. In March 1942, they began landing in Indonesia. Like their counterpart in Europe, the Dutch Colonial Government crumbled in the face of the invaders and by 9 March 1942, surrendered. On 22 March 1942, Hatta and Syahrir were again transferred to Jakarta.

In Jakarta, Hatta met with Major General Harada, the Interim Head of Government. Harada asked Hatta to become an advisor for the occupational Government. Hatta accepted the job and then asked Harada if Japan was here to colonize Indonesia. Harada assured Hatta that Japan would not do. In Hatta’s eyes, an acknowledgement of an Indonesian Independence by Japan was extremely important. If Japan, with its ultra-nationalistic ideology was able to recognize Indonesia’s independence, it would put more pressure on the Allies (especially America and the United Kingdom) as representatives of democracy to do the same thing.

In July 1942, Hatta was reunited with Sukarno who after Flores had been transferred to Sumatra before the Japanese arrived, and had also been asked for his services. Although they had left off on a bad note, Sukarno wanted to speak with Hatta before speaking with anyone else. In a secret meeting at Hatta’s Jakarta home Sukarno, Hatta and Sjahrir agreed that Sjahrir would go underground to organise the revolutionary resistance while the other 2 would commence their cooperation with the Japanese occupier.Mrazek, Rudolf Sjahrir: politics in exile in Indonesia (SEAP Cornel South East Asia program, 1994) ISBN 0-87727-713-3 P.222 Hatta and Sukarno now had the common goal of working with the Japanese and then trying to achieve independence from them. Together with Ki Hadjar Dewantoro and Muhammadiyah Chairman, Kiai Haji Mas Mansur, Hatta and Sukarno formed a quattuorvirate of leaders tasked by the Japanese occupational Government as their intermediary with the Indonesian people.

Hatta together with the other members of the quattuorvirate worked with much fervor under the Japanese Government. They echoed Japanese propaganda and presented the Japanese Empire as the protector, leader, and the light of Asia. At the same time however, Hatta continued to promote Indonesia’s desire for independence. In a speech in December 1942, Hatta said that Indonesia had been freed from the Dutch Colonial Government, but if they were freed only to be colonized by another power, he would rather see Indonesia drown to the bottom of the ocean.

On 9 March 1943, the Japanese Occupational Government approved the formation of the Centre of People’s Power (Putera) with Hatta and the other quattuorvirate as the co-Chairmen of the association. Sukarno thought that this would be a way from which they could gain support for independence, instead the Japanese used this to their own cause and to start their romusha (forced labour) regime in Indonesia.

In November 1943, Hatta and Sukarno’s efforts in cooperating with the Japanese Occupational Government was recognized by Emperor Hirohito who decorated them with awards in Tokyo.

As the tide of the war began to turn against the Japanese, the Japanese Occupational Government in Indonesia became desperate to maintain control. Putera was disbanded and replaced with Djawa Hokokai in March 1944. Although still Chaired by Sukarno, the Indonesians had less freedom of movement than they had had in Putera. When defeat began looming on the horizon, Prime Minister Koiso announced in September 1944 that Japan would grant Indonesia its independence in the near future.

From then on, momentum began to gather for the independence of Indonesia, fuelled by the nationalist sentiments of Indonesians and supported by sympathizers from Japan such as Rear Admiral Maeda. In Maeda’s case, he even set up a discussion forum called the Free Indonesia Centre and invited Hatta and Sukarno along to deliver lectures on nationalism. This was followed in April 1945, by the formation of the Investigative Body for the Preparation of Indonesian Independence (BPUPKI). BPUPKI would meet over the next three months and would decide on things such as the constitution and which territories would be part of Indonesia.