This poster for the Dutch Communist Party (Communistische Partij NederlNot everyone in the Netherlands supported the military action in Indonesia. The Dutch Communist Party (Communistische Partij Holland, CPH) was the only party to have advocated independence for Indonesia from 1918 onwards, with the slogan “Indonesia independent of Holland now!” (Indonesië los van Holland nu!). Starting from the bottom right, the poster shows a European and an Indonesian dockworker and a European and an Indonesian sailor. Fraternally, they all hold a red flag that sports the face of Lenin. With a quote by Marx, the poster calls on the people of the Netherlands to agitate for the immediate independence of Indonesia. The ship at the bottom left recalls a previous incident when European and Indonesian sailors rose up together: the mutiny on the Dutch naval vessel the Zeven Provinciën in 1933, which was suppressed violently by the colonial regime.
‘Indonesië los van Holland nu!’. CPH poster, c. 1933. Or. 27.011-9.