African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1741 Treason
Governor Stafren's decision was quite "humorous," as he had previously regarded East Africa as a major enemy of the Dutch East Indies, but now it had become a lifeline.

Governor Stafren then explained the reasons for this decision.

"The Japanese are unlikely to dare to offend East Africa, so as the situation in the Dutch East Indies continues to deteriorate, we can seek refuge in East Africa."

The word "asylum" used by Governor Stafren here has two meanings. First, he hopes to use East Africa to force Japan to back down, although this possibility is extremely small. Second, it concerns their personal safety, which the East African side is unlikely to refuse.

Regarding the first point, it can be understood that Governor Stafren hoped to use East Africa to mediate the current war between the Netherlands and Japan, which is a common practice in the international community when small countries are invaded by large countries.

The Netherlands is currently in dire straits, barely able to survive on its own. Unable to rely on domestic aid, it has no choice but to seek external assistance.

In theory, Britain and France would be the best choices, given that the Netherlands is currently a de facto ally of both countries, and Britain and France still wield considerable influence in Southeast Asia.

However, distant water cannot quench immediate thirst. To seek help from Britain and France, one would have to go to Singapore and Saigon. But how could Governor Stauffren possibly get there? Singapore was manageable, but Saigon was too far away.

The same logic applies to the United States. Going to Manila is more dangerous than going to Saigon. Not to mention that Britain and France are now allies of the Netherlands and have real ties with each other. The relationship between the United States and the Netherlands is relatively bland, even less so than the relationship with East Africa.

Despite the fact that East Africa has extorted a lot of good things from the Netherlands over the years, in reality, it is precisely because East Africa has had many dealings with the Netherlands that the ties between the two countries have been strengthened, even though the Netherlands was not entirely willing to cooperate in these dealings.

For example, every time East Africa negotiates a major land deal with the Netherlands, there are always accompanying economic cooperation projects, which is like slapping someone and then giving them a sweet treat.

Of course, the Netherlands benefits from these economic cooperation projects, and East Africa certainly doesn't lose out either. For example, East Africa invests in or jointly develops the plantations and mines in the Dutch East Indies. The products produced are valuable to the East African domestic market and can also increase East Africa's influence on prices.

It could even enhance East Africa's global pricing power over certain goods, such as rubber from the Dutch East Indies.

East Africa is the world's largest rubber producer, while the Dutch East Indies are the third largest rubber-producing region. Through cooperation with the Netherlands, East Africa has influenced the world's third largest rubber-producing region, which undoubtedly enhances East Africa's control over the world rubber market and its price-setting advantages.

At the same time, every time East Africa extorted money from the Netherlands, it would also promise the Netherlands certain security guarantees.

This is why Governor Stafren had the audacious idea that East Africa could help them overcome their difficulties.

The Netherlands and East Africa have real, intertwined interests, and the Dutch East Indies, to put it bluntly, can be considered part of East Africa's sphere of influence.

Japan's invasion of the Dutch East Indies is also impacting East Africa's own interests.

Governor Stafren said, "East Africa probably doesn't want to see problems in our Dutch East Indies, because that would also harm East Africa's interests in the Dutch East Indies."

“Their investment here is substantial, far exceeding that of other countries. We, the Netherlands, rule the East Indies, so we will cooperate to protect their interests.”

"The Japanese are obviously not as easy to talk to as we are, especially when it comes to strategic resources that are particularly important to Japan, such as oil, rubber, and tin."

"Japan's urgent need for these resources means they cannot compromise on East Africa."

East Africa and Japan had different needs for the Dutch East Indies. For East Africa, the resources of the Dutch East Indies were a tool for making money, but for Japan, they were truly a matter of national destiny and an irreplaceable necessity.

With the occupation of the Dutch East Indies, Japan could clearly determine the future output of strategic resources in the region, such as oil. Japan would certainly bring every last drop back to its homeland or invest it in the front lines.

Resources such as rubber, tin ore, and copper ore will be used to meet the needs of Japan's domestic industry and war effort as much as possible.

Governor Stafren recognized this, which is why he concluded that East Africa did not want the Dutch East Indies colony to fall into Japanese hands.

Hertas's advisor thought so too, but he was not as optimistic as Governor Stafren.

“Your Excellency, that is true, but East Africa may not be willing to offend Japan because of our involvement. After all, even if East Africa were to go to war with Japan, it would have to pay a considerable price.”

Warfare costs money, and Japan's military strength is not only not weak, but it is a formidable adversary that every country in the world should take seriously.

Especially in the Western Pacific, Japan's military advantage will further expand. After all, Japan is an Asian country, and apart from the United States, it would be more costly for other Western countries to wage war against Japan in the Pacific.

Although East Africa has a Pacific Fleet, from any perspective, the strength of the East African Pacific Fleet is inferior to that of the Japanese Navy.

If East Africa were to go to war with Japan, it would be necessary to mobilize naval forces from the Indian Ocean.

However, Hertas clearly did not believe that East Africa would completely turn against Japan for the sake of the interests of the Dutch East Indies colony.

Governor Stafren knew this too, and he said helplessly, "But do we have a better option than this?"

“If we seek help from East Africa, we still have a glimmer of hope. If East Africa is willing to stand on our side, and Japan does not dare to offend East Africa, then we may be able to continue to maintain our rule over the Dutch East Indies.”

To achieve Governor Stafren's best expectations, two conditions must be met simultaneously: first, East Africa must be willing to help the Netherlands; second, Japan must be willing to give East Africa face.

Even if things develop as Governor Stafren desires, the Dutch East Indies would inevitably suffer heavy losses, having promised Japan substantial benefits.

However, compared to the loss of Dutch colonial rule over the East Indies, this was a minor issue.

Even if that's the logic, Hertas still didn't have any hope for Governor Stafren's idea.

"If East Africa were truly willing to help us, they would probably have warned us long ago that the Japanese navy's long-distance raid would have taken them through the Far East waters, then through the South China Sea, before finally reaching the Dutch East Indies."

“East Africa must have been aware of Japan’s large-scale military operation, but we had not received any prior notification from East Africa.”

"There is also the East African Pacific Fleet Command in the South China Sea, which is located on Belitung Island, which is very close to us. However, until the Japanese invasion of Batavia, we did not see any action from the East African Pacific Fleet."

"Although Japan is targeting us this time, the Java Sea is obviously an extremely important sea area for East Africa. Is the East African Pacific Fleet just going to let a country easily enter its territory?"

Hertas casually refers to the Java Sea as the territory of the East African Navy, which is not wrong. Before the 20th century, the Java Sea was definitely within the Dutch sphere of influence.

However, since the 20th century, with East Africa controlling Lanfang, East Kalimantan, Belitung Island, and even the Sunda Strait, East Africa has become the de facto hegemon of the Java Sea. Not to mention anything else, the fact that the East African Pacific Fleet headquarters is located on Belitung Island is sufficient proof of East Africa's military presence in the Java Sea.

Now, allowing Japan to easily enter the Java Sea and even launch a war is just like the Soviet Union deploying missiles in Cuba in the past, or even worse.

This is normal reasoning. Of course, abnormal situations are also possible, such as East Africa being extremely peace-loving and not wanting to fight.

Obviously, neither Hertas's advisor nor Governor Stafren would believe this. East Africa loves peace? Whether others know or not is unknown, but the Dutch certainly don't believe it.

By the time Governor Stafren arrived, he was well aware that seeking help from East Africa was virtually impossible.

But he still insisted on doing so, because regardless of whether East Africa helped the Netherlands or not, ensuring their safety was definitely not a problem.

So Stafren ended the conversation.

"Alright, that's enough. Let's evacuate now and not waste any more time. If we delay any longer, we'll really fall into the hands of the Japanese."

Therefore, on May 29, 1939, Governor Stafren and other key officials of the Batavian colonial government fled Batavia in haste before the Japanese landed and occupied the governor's residence.

Governor Stafren abandoned the Batavian army, hoping they would delay the Japanese and give him more time to escape.

However, after losing Dutch command, the local Batavian army clearly lacked the resolve to defend Batavia to the death, and the Japanese occupied the city almost without bloodshed.

Governor Stafren and the Dutch fled to northern Batavia, specifically Merak at the northern tip of Java, almost overnight.

Merak was once a pepper trading port of the Banten Sultanate. Before the rise of the Dutch East India Company, the Banten Sultanate was a powerful trading kingdom on the island of Java, and Merak was an important export port. After the Dutch took control of the region, it continued to function as a local port.

The port is located on the south bank of the Sunda Strait, opposite an East African military base, and Merak itself is a region in East Africa with frequent various activities.

There are many East African merchants in the area, especially those in the pepper business. In addition, East African banks and companies have investments there, and the East African Navy also frequently replenishes supplies and materials there.

There are also ferries here that go directly to Banda Lampung in southern Sumatra, which is the most important military port in East Africa controlling the Sunda Strait.

It is worth mentioning that there were also a considerable number of Dutch troops in Merak, troops that were originally used by the former governor of Stafren to monitor and guard against East Africa.

Now, it has become the only military force he can directly command.

Therefore, Governor Stafren decided to make Merak the location and command center of the provisional government of the Dutch East Indies colony, and continue to deal with Japan.

Of course, he was also prepared to flee to Banda Lampung by boat at any time should the situation turn bad.

Prior to this, Governor Stafren had sent envoys to Bandalambun and East Africa to communicate, hoping that East Africa would strongly intervene in Japan's aggression against the Dutch East Indies, and also seeking East Africa's protection.

……

Lampung Port.

This is what the Dutch call Bandalambung, the location of the East African Indian Ocean Navy's command and military base in the Sunda Strait.

Brigadier General Trenin, commander of the military base in Lampung, East Africa, met with Dutch envoy Sapiat and learned about Governor Stafren's demands.

“Mr. Sapiat, I deeply sympathize with your country’s plight, but at the moment, we cannot make any promises to the Netherlands.”

"After all, Japan is not a small country, but one of the world's leading powers. Moreover, Japan has come with great force this time, and their naval power is not something that we in East Africa can easily underestimate."

"I will report your intelligence to the mainland, and the Empire will make the appropriate arrangements, but this will take time."

Brigadier General Trenin's explanation clearly did not satisfy the Dutch envoy Sapiat, who said anxiously, "Your Excellency, the situation in the Dutch East Indies is particularly critical right now. You can wait, but we cannot delay!"

"Merak is not far from Batavia. Once Japan stabilizes the situation in Batavia, they will move north to attack Merak. At that time, we will probably become Japanese prisoners."

Brigadier General Trenin said earnestly, "Mr. Sapiat, you must understand our difficulties. After all, Japan is also a major power in the world, and even the Empire has to be cautious about its attitude towards Japan."

"Moreover, my personal power is limited. I must contact my superiors first and then obey their arrangements."

Brigadier General Trenin was, in essence, just an overseas military commander stationed in East Africa, not a colonial governor. If he were the latter, he would have had more autonomy and could act first and report later in special circumstances.

So there's absolutely no problem with Terenin's statement, and Sapiat knows that too.

Seeing that Brigadier General Terenin was unmoved by any attempts to persuade him, Sapiat directly offered his bets.

"Brigadier General Terlin, I know your difficulties, but in urgent situations, we must act expediently. Now, the government of our Dutch East Indies colony is also willing to show our sincerity."

"Before I arrived, Governor Stafren had promised that he could represent the Dutch government to completely hand over sovereignty of the entire Sunda Strait to East Africa, including the area within 50 kilometers inland from both sides of the Sunda Strait."

"I only hope that East Africa can intervene in this war as soon as possible and ensure the security of our Dutch East Indies government."

The offer made by Governor Stafren was undoubtedly a major piece of news for East Africa, given that it involved the entire Sunda Strait.

As the governor of the colony, Governor Stafren had a great deal of autonomy, but the territorial transaction was clearly beyond his authority. However, at this point, Governor Stafren didn't care at all, since the Netherlands itself was on the verge of collapse and no one cared about him.

Conversely, if he could involve East Africa and thus preserve the Dutch East Indies, even at the cost of the crucial Sunda Strait, he would have the confidence to deal with any subsequent attempts to hold him accountable, even if the Netherlands itself remained in power.

This is a matter of choosing between protecting the greater good and sacrificing the lesser good. The Dutch mainland would understand why he did this. In fact, if this were to be achieved, with a little maneuvering, Governor Stafren could easily become a "hero" for protecting the Dutch East Indies.

(End of this chapter)