Independence was not straightforward, however. The Dutch were determined to regain control of what they called the Dutch East Indies, for their wealth was founded on the riches plundered from Indonesia. After World War II the British effectively declared war on Indonesia and sent troops to help the Dutch regain control.

An Englishman, Tom Atkinson, was stationed in Batavia (now Jakarta) and he documented all that was happening in letters to his then-fiancée Rene Box. Tom was instrumental in Indonesia gaining worldwide acceptance of their Independence.

It was on the morning of Oct.13, 1945 that Tom landed at Tanjung Priok, the main port for Batavia. He was a member of the RAF Commando Unit 3210 SC. The unit was part of a task force to achieve the following objectives: disarming the Japanese forces, repatriating Allied prisoners of war and internees, and maintaining law and order

Tom and most of 3210 SC believed there was an ulterior motive for this British operation, as described in Tom’s own words.

“We disembarked from our landing craft at Tanjung Priok quite prepared to fight our way ashore, and quite prepared to fight for the occupation of Kemajoran. But to our astonishment we were greeted with open arms by a very friendly people who welcomed us, spoke to us, talked to us, and showed us what they were doing.

“And the things they were doing were remarkable, such as painting murals on walls, also words and slogans. Murals about the equality of man, and woman I suppose too, about freedom, about democracy and about the Atlantic Charter. Now this was the end of the war as far as we were concerned and we were in a situation where we had fought for what we believed, that was for freedom and democracy.”

For Tom, the drive to Kemajoran airport was remarkably interesting and very inspiring. Indeed, it was the start of a relationship with the people of Indonesia that was to dominate his life for the next 20 years, and indeed be a major influence on him for the rest of his life.

Tom, his good friend Peter Humphries, and the rest of his colleagues were determined not to fight the Indonesians, and moreover, were determined to do everything in their power to help Indonesia. Tom details this in an article he subsequently wrote but never published.

“Peter Humphries and myself were determined that we would take no part in military operations against Indonesia, although we then knew little of the Republic. To avoid active duty, we sought and received permission to establish a British Forces school at Kemajoran, and we became the staff of that school. The building we were given stands at the end of Kemajoran runway, on J1. Garuda.

“Consciously and deliberately we then sought Indonesian friends, friends who could enlighten and teach us, and who might know of ways we could help the new born and struggling Republic.

“The first such friend was Mochtar Lubis. Memory of how that happened is rather hazy, but I believe it was no more than the accident that the Antara office was near Kemajoran, and that it bore in English the name ‘Antara News Agency’. Mochtar was then associated with Antara, and then, as now, had a good command of English (for we then knew no Indonesian), and was articulate and very intelligent. From him, and largely through him, our circle of friends grew. They were, and, so far as I remember, in this order, Pak Said, Charles Tambu, Sudarpo, Soejatmoko, Haji Agus Salim, Moh. Sjah, Sjahrir, Mas Ming and Dr Subandrio.”

“During the many hours of discussion, debate and argument with these people, it soon became clear that there was one particular task that Peter and I could usefully do, and that was to act as a channel whereby news from Indonesia could reach the outside world. Our school was established and had no real supervision by superior officers. We had typewriters, a duplicator, access to paper, and, most important, access to the British Forces Postal Services. We had a truck which we used to carry pupils backward and forward to their billets from the school.

“From these things a newssheet was born, News From Indonesia, issued twice each week, with material supplied by our friends and allies, prepared on RAF premises, using RAF equipment and facilities, and distributed worldwide by means of the British Forces Postal Service. Of course, all of this was surreptitious, done without the knowledge of superior officers and with a certain amount of ‘cloak and dagger’ atmosphere.

“Seventy or eighty copies of that newssheet were sent out twice each week from Kemajoran to America, Britain, Australia, India, Malaya, Ceylon. They were addressed to newspapers and magazines, political parties, politicians, universities and individuals. In so far as we influenced world opinion – and we did – it was through that medium, not through intelligence reports, for we submitted none of those, nor had channels from them.

Even after demobilization in 1946 and his return to the UK, Tom still supported the Indonesians in their efforts to have independence universally recognized. Tom describes these efforts in his own words.

“Late in 1946 it became clear to us that we could not continue issuing News From Indonesia. Dutch authorities were assuming more and more power in Jakarta, and we had several close escapes from discovery. Senior British officers who had at least turned a blind eye to our operation (and sometimes warned us of imminent danger) were moved away. Peter was not quite due for demobilization and stayed in Jakarta until December 1946. It was arranged that I would continue to issue News From Indonesia from England, on the basis of information supplied to me by Peter in Jakarta.

“Without access to the material supplies of the British Forces – paper, stencils, envelopes and postal facilities – the expense of issuing News From Indonesia was crippling, and of course all expenses had to be paid out of my own pocket. That pocket was not deep and was soon empty. Fortunately, just as it was becoming impossible to finance any more issues, Peter returned from Jakarta, bringing with him the sum of 80 pounds from Antara and the mandate to establish an Antara office in England. That mandate, incidentally, was issued to me by Adam Malik, whom I had not then met, but whose reputation as a champion of independence I well knew.

“It was not a big sum of money, but it did enable us to continue issuing News From Indonesia (now over the name of Antara) and generally to continue propaganda efforts in England on behalf of the Republic.

“That subsidy from Antara soon became exhausted. My pocket had long been empty, and Peter’s pocket was fast emptying. At that time Dr Subandrio arrived in London, and from our point of view his arrival was very opportune. He arrived in the autumn of 1947 as the authorised representative of the Republic.

“He did not represent a political party or a political grouping, but the Republic as a whole, and his personal political affiliation was immaterial.

“The question of whether Subandrio sought out Peter and I on his arrival in London, or whether we sought him out is quite irrelevant. We knew he was arriving; he knew we were there. He was the authorized representative of the Republic; we were issuing a Republican newssheet under the aegis of Antara. Naturally we came together immediately and gladly.

“Fortunately, Dr Subandrio had access to funds. Immediately the propaganda effort was intensified. We used the offices and services of the India League in London at first, thanks to Krishna Menon, and a new newssheet was issued. Indonesian Information was born there, and proudly stated that it was issued by the Representative of the Republic of Indonesia in London.

“Through 1948 and 1949 the struggle continued, and in London we did our best to help, reflecting always the policies of the Republican government. We had no policy of our own, no political axe to sharpen, no political advantage to gain. I can say clearly that Dr Subandrio never interfered in the editing or distribution of the newssheet. His task was in the wider field of public and political relations and within the limits imposed by his position as ‘Representative’ he did excellent work.

“With the transfer of sovereignty, the Office of the Representative of the Republic of Indonesia became the Indonesian Embassy. Dr Subandrio was the ambassador, although the first head of mission was Soejatmoko, as chargé.

“It is not part of my purpose to describe those days, nor the difficulties involved in assimilating into the Embassy those Dutch elements forced onto us by The Round Table Conference agreements. Suffice it to say that in early 1953 I was transferred from London to Jakarta, into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Note the year of my transfer, 1953, when Dr Subandrio was transferred to the Embassy in Moscow, not 1956, when he returned from Moscow to become secretary-general of the Ministry.

“During the years I spent in Jakarta, I was a pegawai negeri (civil servant) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and was paid as such. However, largely because of problems with Dr Subandrio (which does not concern this narrative) I spent much of the time from 1956 onward in the offices of the National Council and later of the Supreme Advisory Council. President Sukarno used my services as a speechwriter – not a ‘stylist’ – and indeed I was responsible for all the President’s writings and speeches in English from the Bandung (African-Asian) Conference in 1955 to the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1960.”

President Sukarno is recognized as one of the world’s most powerful voices for preaching Independence for countries and for the abolishment of colonial powers. During the 1950s Sukarno traveled the world and gave some very famous, powerful and long speeches making his arguments for countries to be in control of their own destiny. All of these speeches were written by Tom Atkinson, and Sukarno gave these speeches generally without any alterations.

Tom was always concerned that future historians would misinterpret the fact that he, Tom, wrote Sukarno’s English speeches, as he later states.

“Well I was putting words into his mouth but what I wasn’t doing was putting ideas into his mind. I think I had a sufficiently deep understanding of his thought processes, his ideas, and his ideals to be able to interpret those in the English language that he used so effectively and which he loved so dearly too.”

The main driving force for Indonesia gaining independence was President Sukarno. But what of Sukarno the man? Tom later recalled his memories of Bung Karno (familiar name for Sukarno).

“The memories that I have of Sukarno are of a man with the most loving nature. I had a very close working relationship with Bung Karno, and also a very close human relationship. We would walk together, make jokes together and sing together. I loved Sukarno deeply. Sukarno was the essence of goodness in man with his love for, and interest in all people. He could translate the most complicated of ideas into simple words. He could express the deepest longings, the deepest hopes and ambitions of humanity, in simple words that all could understand. He was a great orator and could move crowds with his words. Sukarno was one of the truly great figures of the 20^th century.”

One of Tom’s few regrets about the years in Jakarta was that he refused Bung Karno’s suggestion that he should write his biography, as he recalls.

“In an intimate moment one day he asked me to do this and rather sadly, I thought, pointed out that he was a poor man and that all he owned was a small plot of land in central Java. He felt that in his old age he would like to have money to live in comfort, and he thought that one way of doing this would be to produce a biography. I too would have benefited from that, not only in terms of exposure, but in financial terms.

“Unfortunately, at the time and after giving it very serious consideration I decided against attempting this work on the basis that it would bring me into prominence. At that time, it would be in 1958 or 1959, I was intent on remaining very anonymous. It seemed to me that my duty lay in the backroom and not in a prominent position.”  

After leaving the employ of the Indonesians, Tom did make one further point.

“It has been said, although not yet written, that I must have become rich during my years with the Republic. Indeed, I did become rich, but not in money. My mind was enriched by contact with some of the finest people of this generation. Pak Said (and Indonesia is much the poorer for his death, which I mourn deeply) taught me how to love all mankind. Haji Agus Salim taught me to see the truth that lies behind the word. President Sukarno taught me how simplicity and love can lie behind pomp and ceremony. Captain Sen Gupta of the Indian Army taught me how to analyze and examine and reject the words of politicians. Mochtar Lubis taught me that courage resides in intellectual honesty, not in the physical facing of an enemy. And Molly Bondan taught me humility.

“If I had properly learned, and could apply, all the lessons of those years I would be wealthy indeed. But money? I came to Indonesia penniless and penniless I left.”

Tom led a remarkable life after leaving the employ of the Indonesian government, but this was all subsidiary to the work he did with the Indonesians. It is few men that can say at the end of their life that they felt so strongly about a nation’s future that they did something to help achieve it.

Tom, of course, was far too modest to say this himself, but it is undoubtedly true. Perhaps the most fitting tribute to Tom is, to quote the words he himself quoted at the end of an interview about his life:

“I look back on a long life, a very interesting life, a life with many experiences, much change, but I look back with great pleasure at my youth. I think it’s all summed up by saying, in the words of an English poet, William Wordsworth – Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive, and to be young was very heaven”.

***

The writer is the author of Merdeka: One Man’s Fight to Free a Nation from Colonial Oppression (ISBN 978-1-910745-88-5), which was recently published by Luath Press.

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